This is Who We Are
by schneidahhh
Summary: Melinda Gordon is visited by the ghost of a teen girl who asks for her help. Little does Melinda know, she could be putting her own life at risk. FINAL CHAPTER UP!
1. What Break?

**A/N : This is my first fic. Review, but be honest.**

**Thanks dudes!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 1: **

Andrea Moreno was carrying a giant box from the back room of the antique store, into the main show room. Just as she set the box down, her best friend, and co-worker, Melinda Gordon entered the store.

"Hey!" said Andrea, "What's up with you? You seem different"  
"Yeah, well I haven't seen any spirits in weeks," said Melinda, "I mean, as much as I like to help them, it just feels good to have a break."  
"Well, since you're on a spirit break, how about helping me unload some of these boxes. There's 2 more in the back."

Melinda smiled and said, "Sure, just let me take off my coat. I'll grab another box, too. Just gimme a sec."

With that, she headed for the back room. She took off her jacket, and placed it on the back of the chair, grabbed a box and headed back to the other room.

"Where'd all this stuff come from?" asked Melinda.  
"Oh, some ladies came by and dropped them off. Said they didn't have room for it any more," said Andrea.  
"That's a shame. This stuff's gorgeous," said Melinda.

They continued unpacking boxes, when suddenly the lights started to flicker.

"What's going on?" asked Andrea.  
"I'm not sure. It's probably nothing," said Melinda.

Sure enough, within seconds the lights stopped flickering and returned to normal.

"Well, that was weird," said Andrea, looking over at Melinda.

She saw that Melinda was looking over towards the door. Andrea followed her gaze to the door, and saw nothing. What Melinda saw was a girl, no older than 20 standing directly to the right of the store's front door. Her face was filled with pure anger.

"Wait a second," she said, "Is this a-"  
Melinda nodded. "Yeah. It really is."

Andrea could tell by the tone of her friend's voice that something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" she asked, "What is it?"

Melinda looked at the girl, this time she focused at a red spot on her chest. It was a bullet hole, that was still bleeding.  
The girl saw the look on Melinda's face change from annoyed to scared, and with that she asked the question, "Can you see me?"

All Melinda could do was nod. She had seen many spirits before, with different physical defects, but she had never seen anything like this.

Andrea looked back at Melinda and said, "Well, so much for your break."

**Yeah, ok it's not that great…should I continue? Or just stop here? It's totally up to you guys! **

**Thanks! love**


	2. What Really Happened

**A/N : This is my first fic. Review, but be honest.**

**Thanks dudes!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 2: **

**April, 1 year ago **

Michelle Sullivan was walking down the hallway of her high school. The dance was coming up, and she was planning on asking Zack Burke, one of the most popular guys in the school. She wasn't sure of her chances, but she'd figure she'd try anyways.

As she turned the corner she saw her best friend, Carly Glen standing at her locker, talking with someone. It only took Michelle a few more steps before she realized that she was talking to Zack.

"It's no big deal," Michelle thought, "She knows how much I like him. She wouldn't do anything to take him away…"

Then she heard Zack laugh, louder than she'd ever heard before.

"She's flirting with him? I don't believe it!"

Too upset to talk to Zack, Michelle turned to leave. As she was walking away, she heard Carly coming behind her.

"Hey! Chelle! Wait up!" yelled Carly.

Michelle stopped and waited for her friend to catch up. When she did, they continued walking together, to the exit.

"Hey," said Michelle, "What's up?"

"Nothin'. We still on for tonight?" asked Carly as they exited the school building.

…Tonight? Tonight was Friday night. Michelle and Carly had been having sleepovers on Friday nights ever since the fourth grade. Figuring their conversation wasn't a big deal, and not wanting to create any drama, Michelle replied with, "Of course we are."

"Great, so, you can come to my house any time after 4. My parents are going out to dinner, then to some show," Carly told her.

"Kay, sounds good. I'll see you then."

They went off to their houses, in opposite directions. When Michelle arrived home, she ran into her older brother, Brad, who was home from college.

"Hey, can I have the car tonight?" she asked him.

"Ugh.. What time? Me and Josh were gonna go out tonight," complained Brad.

"Well, can you drop me off at Carly's at 6:30?" asked Michelle.

"Yeah, I guess I can do that," said Brad.

"Awesome, thanks," said Michelle, as she walked out the door, heading to her room.

She figured she'd leave her homework till Sunday. She knew she wouldn't be able to concentrate on it. The thought of Michelle and Zack was still on her mind. She went to her closet, pulled out her bag, and did her regular routine of packing for Carly's house. Once she was done, she turned on her TV and decided to be a couch potato until it was time to go.

Meanwhile, over at Carly's house, Carly was busy getting stuff ready. She always made sure to have enough peanut butter and oreo's. It was the one thing that always completed their sleepovers.

It seemed like it took forever for 6:30 to roll around but it finally did, and Carly saw Brad pull in her driveway to drop Michelle off.

Carly opened the door and said, "Hey! You ready for oreo's, peanut butter & movies?"

Michelle forced a smile and said, "Yeah! Bring it on!"

"My parents left like, 15 minutes ago. Thank god you missed them! My mom was freaking out cuz she couldn't find anything to wear. So she was asking everyone's opinion. She even asked for Buddy's opinion!" exclaimed Carly.

"Buddy, the dog?" asked Michelle.

Carly just nodded. "But she says hi."

Michelle just smiled.

A few minutes later, they were settled in Carly's room ready to watch a movie.

"Shoot. I forgot drinks," said Carly.

"I gotta go to the bathroom anyways. I'll grab some," said Michelle.

"Awesome. I really didn't feel like getting up," said Carly.

"Lazy," said Michelle as she was walking out the door.

"I heard that!" said Carly, as they both laughed.

Michelle walked down the hall, and made her way down the stairs. She knew Carly's house almost as well as she knew her own.

Down the stairs, kitchen & bathroom to the right. Parent's bedroom to the left.

Instead of taking a right, she took a left. She went into Carly's parent's room, and over to her father's nightstand. Opening the bottom drawer, she moved a few items out of the way to reveal a gun. Grabbing it quickly she shut the drawer and ran into the kitchen. She went to the fridge, grabbed 2 sodas, and shut the door again. She placed the gun in her sweatshirt pocket, and carried the drinks upstairs.

"Geez, you had me thinking you got lost!" said Carly jokingly, as Michelle handed her a soda.

"Oh my god! I almost forgot to tell you!" exclaimed Carly, "Guess who I talked to today?"

Playing dumb, Michelle asked, "Who?"

"Zack Burke!" squealed Carly, "He is just so funny! He even asked me to go to the dance with him b-"

"You bitch!" yelled Michelle, "How could you! You know how much I like him!"

"Michelle! You didn't let me fin-" Carly started, but was cut off by Michelle.

"I should have known you'd try and steal him! You're always so jealous of everyone!" yelled Michelle, who was beginning to lose her temper. She reached into her pocket and pulled out the gun.

"Woah. Michelle. Put it down," said Carly, trying to calm her friend down.

"No! I'm sick of you! I can't deal with knowing every time I find something that makes me happy, you're gonna be there to steal it from right under me!" yelled Michelle.

"Michelle! Listen to me! I -" Carly started to speak again, but was cut off again. This time she wasn't cut off by Michelle, but by the ringing shot of a gun.

Michelle looked at Carly, who wasn't moving. Michelle dropped the gun, backed against the wall, and sunk to the ground, trying to come to terms with what happened. She began to feel nauseous, and slowly, her world became black.


	3. Tell Who?

**A/N : This is my first fic. Review, but be honest.**

**Thanks dudes!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 3: **

Andrea looked over at Melinda, and what staring at, what seemed to her, as empty space. But she knew by the look on her best friends face that something was wrong. Really wrong.

Melinda looked at the girl. "…um..what's your name?" asked Melinda.

"Carly," the ghost girl stated.

"Carly what?" asked Melinda.

"Glen," the girl told Melinda, "Why can you see me? Why can't anyone else?"

"It's this thing, that I have. Not many people do," replied Melinda, "What do you want?"

Carly looked at the ground, and then back up at Melinda.

"I need you to tell him."

Melinda, not understanding what she meant, asked, "Tell who what?"

"I need you to tell him what happened," said Carly.

"Tell who?" demanded Melinda.

Andrea tried to go about her own business, but she wanted to know who Melinda was talking to.

"Melinda, what's going on?" she asked.

Melinda turned around and looked at Andrea. "I'm not really sure."

She turned back around to look back at Carly, but she was gone. Melinda stood there, looking at where she had been standing, not really too sure of what happened.

A few hours later Melinda and Andrea were on their lunch break. Melinda went to the back room to get her coat, and Andrea went to the front window to change the sign to say, 'be back at 1:00!' They decided to go to their usual spot; Village Java. They walked down the street and into the coffee shop. Both girls got their regulars, and sat down on one of the couches.

"So…are you thinking of telling me what happened today…or what?" asked Andrea.

"Well, as soon as I figure out what happened, I'll be sure to clue you in," answered Melinda.

"Well, can you at least tell me what you saw?"

"I saw a girl," Melinda said simply.

"A girl?" asked Andrea, "That's it? Come on! What's she look like?"

"Why would you need to know that? Not like you can see her," said Melinda smiling.

"Oh, ha-ha," said Andrea, "Come on. I just want to know what's going on."

Melinda smiled, and gave into her friend's protest.

"She looked young. Like… maybe 17, or 18. She looked really angry, and she'd been shot. She said her name was Carly Glen. And when I asked her what she wanted, she said she needed me to tell him what happened."

"Tell who?" asked Andrea.

"That seems to be the question of the day," replied Melinda, taking another sip of her coffee. "Guess I'm gonna have to find that out on my own. Who knows when I'll see her again."

**Yeah, sorry that took so long. They're gonna get better!**

**Promise!**

**In the meantime review to keep me going!**

**Thankssss! xx**


	4. Revelations

**A/N : This is my first fic. Review, but be honest.**

**Thanks !**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

**  
Chapter 4:**

After their break, Melinda and Andrea headed back to the store. Andrea changed the sign so it now read, "OPEN" once again. Melinda went to the back room and put her coat on a chair.

Once Andrea had changed the sign she continued to the back room.

"So," she said to Melinda, "What are you gonna do?"

Melinda turned to face Andrea.

"Well, it would help if I could see her again, but there's no telling when I that could happen," said Melinda, "But I can try to find out as much as I can about her."

"And you're looking for…what exactly?" asked Andrea as Melinda walked to the computer.

"Well, you know. Just find out who she was. How she died. Maybe find some friends or relatives and talk to them," replied Melinda as she started her online search. Andrea gave her friend a funny look. Melinda could see Andrea out of the corner of her eye.

"What's with the look?" she asked.

"It's just… look at you. A few minutes ago you were happy to have a break. Then this ghost girl shows up, and you drop everything for her. Why?"

"Well," said Melinda, "I guess it's just that if I don't help her, who else will?"

"Don't you ever get tired of it?" questioned Andrea.

"I guess sometimes. I mean, it gets tough. Grandview isn't the biggest town around, and there's a lot of people who think I belong in a padded room. But, it's what I do. It's what I'm _supposed _to do. And as tiring and hard as it can be, I like helping them," Melinda told her.

"Wow. Really?" asked Andrea.

"Yeah, why?" asked Melinda.

"It's just…well it's really nice."

Melinda laughed. She turned back to the computer and looked at the results to her search.

"What'd you find?" asked Andrea as she went over to some more boxes and continued unpacking. Melinda clicked on a link.

"Okay…Carly Glen…age 17. She was from Grandview," read Melinda.

"Does it say how she died?" asked Andrea, while unwrapping some old pictures.

"Yeah, it says she was playing with her dad's gun. And it accidentally went off," Melinda read.

A funny look came over Andrea's face. "A 17 year girl was playing with her dad's gun? Why?" she asked.

"Well, it says her friend was over. Michelle Sullivan. But she was in the bathroom when it happened. She was the one who found her, and called the police," said Melinda.

"Was there proof?" asked Andrea. Melinda smiled.

"Look at you, and your official questions," she said.

"Well, I'm interested," replied Andrea.

Melinda re-read the page that she had found. "Well, it says that there were questions of whether it was suicide or an accident, but nothing of murder. But," said Melinda as she continued reading, "I'm sure it helps that the Michelle's father is one of the richest guys in Grandview."

"You think her friend killed her?" asked Andrea.

"Well, there's no way to know for sure. Not until I see Carly again at least. But maybe I could go see the Sullivan's," said Melinda to Andrea.

"Well, if you want my professional opinion, go home first. Before you go see anything. I'm sure Jim would want to know what's going on first. Before you go do something, and end up getting yourself killed," said Andrea.

"Ha ha, you're a comedian," said Melinda.

"I'm serious! Go see Jim first. You know how he feels about you going off on these things yourself."

"Yeah, I know. I'll see him tonight after work," said Melinda looking at Andrea, "I won't go see anyone until I talk to him, okay?"

"Okay. You better not. Now get over here and help me with these boxes," said Andrea.

The two girls spent the remainder of the day unpacking boxes, and making sales. At the end of the day Melinda packed the remainder of the boxes in the back room. She grabbed her jacket and headed back to the front of the store to find Andrea flipping the sign over to say "Closed."

"Well," said Andrea, "Today was an interesting sort of day."

"It sure was," said Melinda as they walked outside into the night. Melinda took out the key to the store as she locked up for the night.

"What are you going to say to Jim?" asked Andrea as Melinda finished locking up.

"I'm not really sure. I think he was really happy that I hadn't seen anything for a while. But I know I have to tell him. So I guess I'm just gonna come right out and say it," replied Melinda.

"Well, good luck with that. And if you need anything you can call me. Okay?" said Andrea.

Melinda smiled. "Okay."

"I'll see you tomorrow," said Andrea as she got into her car and drove away. Melinda waved as she left. She turned to start walking in the direction of her own car. TO her surprise, she turned, and was greeted by Carly. Slightly startling her, Melinda jumped. Nevertheless, she was relieved to see her again. She was different than the last time Melinda had seen her. She didn't look as mean, but there was still a slight anger in her eyes.

"I'm glad to see you again," Melinda said to Carly. Carly didn't say anything, she just looked at Melinda. Melinda sensed that she wasn't really in the talking mood.

"Who do you want me to talk to?" Melinda asked Carly. However, Carly wouldn't answered. She remained silent, just looking at Melinda.

"I know what happened to you Carly." When Carly heard this she spoke.

"No. You don't know anything," she said.

"Yes I do. You were playing with your dad's gun, and it went off," explained Melinda.

"That's not what happened," said Carly.

"What do you mean?" asked Melinda. After a minute Melinda asked, "Was it purposely?"

Suddenly it became very windy, almost causing Melinda to fall over.

"No!" exclaimed Carly, "Not at all."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you," said Melinda, "If you don't mind me asking, what did happen? I mean, if it wasn't an accident. And it wasn't on purpose?"

Carly looked down for a few seconds, before looking at Melinda again. Melinda could tell that Carly was about to tell her something really important. It had been a few minutes since Melinda had asked Carly the question, but she didn't want to pressure her into answering, because she didn't want to risk having her disappear again. So Melinda waited patiently. Finally Carly started to speak.

"Michelle. She's the one who shot me," said Carly.

"Michelle…Your friend?" asked Melinda.

Carly just seemed to ignore the question. Instead she said, "I need you to tell Ryan. Tell him what really happened."

"Ryan..W-Who's Ryan?" asked Melinda.

"Just tell him," said Carly and she disappeared.

"Great. That's just great," said Melinda to herself. She got into her car and started the ignition. She arrived home a few minutes later. That was one thing that Melinda loved about Grandview. You were never too far away from anything there. She pulled into the driveway, and got out of the car. She walked down the path to the front door, and she opened it. She walked inside, took off her coat and hung it up.

"Jim?" called Melinda, "I'm home!" She waited, and didn't hear a response, so she tried again.

"Jim?"

"Right here babe," said Jim as he came down the stairs.

"Hey," said Melinda smiling, "What were you doing up there?"

"Just thought I'd fix that sink in the bathroom. I had nothing better to do," said Jim.

"Isn't that thoughtful of you," said Melinda.

"I thought so," said Jim, smiling, "How was your day?"

Melinda looked at him and then went into the kitchen.

"Okay. I know that look all to well. What'd you see?" asked Jim, following her into the kitchen.

"What do you mean?" Melinda asked playfully as she poured a glass of water from the fridge.

"I'm serious," said Jim as he walked over to her, "What happened today?"

Melinda opened her mouth to answer him, but the phone rang. She went to go answer it, but Jim beat her to it.

"I'll get it. You sit down," he told her. Melinda was about to protest, but she didn't feel up to fighting. Especially over answering a phone call. So she reluctantly sat down in the kitchen, while Jim went down the hall to answer the phone.

"Hello?… Oh hi. How are you? … Okay. I thought so. … Yeah, I'll see you soon…. Okay. Bye," and with that Jim hung up the phone. He walked back into the kitchen to see his wife.

"Who was that?" asked Melinda.

"Barry. From work. He was just telling me about this patient we brought in today," said Jim.

"Anything serious?" asked Melinda concerned.

"Nah. Nothing at all. Now," said Jim, changing subjects, "What happened today?"

"Nothing!" exclaimed Melinda, "What makes you think something happened?"

"Well for one thing, you're home late. For the first time in weeks. Second, you have that look on your face like something happened," said Jim.

"For you information, I stopped at the store on the way home," lied Melinda, "And what is this look that you're talking about?"

"So…you're telling me nothing out of the ordinary happened today?" asked Jim.

"Yeah. That's exactly right," said Melinda taking a drink.

"Wanna try again?" asked Jim.

"What?"

"That wasn't Barry on the phone. It was Andrea," Jim told her. Melinda knew that Andrea had told him she had seen something. She suspected it was because Andrea knew her too well, and she knew that she would try to hide it from Jim. Jim looked at Melinda.

"Okay. Spill."

"It's really nothing, but I saw this girl today in the store. Her name was Carly, I talked to her and she told me her friend shot her. But everyone thinks she was playing with a gun and it went off. And she told me she wants me to tell Ryan what happened," explained Melinda.

"Who's Ryan?" asked Jim.

Melinda looked up at Jim. "I'm not sure yet. But I was thinking of visiting her friend, Michelle and her family tomorrow."

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" asked Jim, "You don't really know anything yet. You're going into this blind."

"I know but, what else can I do?" asked Melinda. Melinda decided she didn't really want the rest of her water so she tossed it into the sink and went upstairs, with Jim following her.

She changed into her pajamas and sat on the bed. Jim stood in the door.

"Why didn't you tell me?" asked Jim.

"What?" asked Melinda.

"Until I told you Andrea called you told me that nothing happened," said Jim walking into the room, and standing next to the bed in front of Melinda.

"Because you were so happy that I hadn't seen any spirits. Things were normal," said Melinda. Then she looked down and sounding like a child she said, "I didn't want you to be mad."

"Mad? Honey, I wouldn't be mad at you," said Jim. Melinda looked up at her husband. He brought her to her feet.

"I love you," he said to her, bringing her into a hug. Accepting the hug she smiled and said, "I love you too."

**THERE YOU GO! I'M SORRY I HAVEN'T UPDATED IN FOREVER.**

**I'VE BEEN SO BUSY WITH SCHOOL AND EVERYTHING!**

**REVIEW! IF I SHOULD CONTINUE.**

**LOVE YOU GUYS! **

** 3 JESS**


	5. Unconditionally

**A/N : This is my first fic. Review, but be honest.**

**Thanks !**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

  
Chapter 5:

That night, after Melinda and Jim talked, they went to bed. Jim was able to fall asleep fairly quickly, however Melinda found it difficult to sleep. She couldn't stop thinking about Carly and what had happened to her. She wanted to help Carly. She really did, but she wasn't sure how she was going to. Jim was right. That was one thing that she hated about him. No matter what, he was always right. But what he had said was the truth.

"_You're going into this blind."_

The words ran over and over in her head. She wasn't really sure why. It's not the first time that she had dove into some family's life. Maybe it was the fact that she wasn't really sure how Carly had died. She wanted to believe Carly, and a part of her truly did, but she couldn't understand why, if Michelle really did kill her, nothing was ever done.

"The family is really prominent in this town. They probably just paid everyone off, so that they wouldn't bring shame to the family name," Melinda thought. As much as she hated to think it, she knew it was probably true. She hated that rich people thought money was the solution to everything. They think they can just make their problems go away by paying them away.

She laid awake in bed almost all night. She kept thinking about how she would go about helping Carly. She knew she had to talk to the Sullivans, especially Michelle. But she wasn't so sure how well that would go over. As if that wasn't enough, she had to find out who Ryan was, and what Carly wanted with him.

And she couldn't help thinking that she let Jim down. For a while, this thought seemed to overpower all the others. She knew Jim was her husband and he said he loved her, but she sometimes wondered if he would love her more if she was more..well, normal.

After hours of thinking, her head began to hurt. Partly because of thinking so much, and partly because of lack of sleep. She knew there was nothing she could do at the moment. Carly was no where to be seen, and the Sullivan's certainly weren't around. She decided it was time to go to sleep. She looked over at her clock. 5:45 AM. "Wonderful," thought Melinda, "This gives me…an hour at the most to sleep." But she didn't really care. She was so tired by then, she just wanted as much sleep as she could get.

At 6:30 Jim stirred, and woke up. He sat up in bed and stretched. He looked over at Melinda. He could tell that she hadn't gotten much sleep. At all. He wanted to stay home with her, but he knew he had to go to work. He leaned over and kissed her forehead before getting out of bed. He took a shower and went downstairs. He put some bread in the toaster, and picked up the phone and dialed Andrea's number.

Andrea had been up for a few minutes and had just gotten out of the shower when her phone rang. She went into the hall, and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" said Andrea as she picked up her phone.

"Hey Andrea. It's Jim."

"Jim, hi. How are you?" asked Andrea.

"I'm pretty good thanks. And yourself?" asked Jim.

"I'm good thanks," said Andrea. After a brief pause Andrea asked, "How's Melinda?"

"She's ok. Actually, that's the reason I'm calling," Jim began, "She told me everything last night. When I got up this morning, I could tell that she hadn't slept much last night. So do you think maybe she could come into work later?"

"Of course!" said Andrea, "She can even have the day off if she wants. I can handle the store myself."

"Yeah, but I don't think she'd go for that," said Jim.

There was a brief pause, and Andrea could sense something was bothering him. That was something they had all been able to pick up. They were all such good friends, they could tell when the smallest thing was bothering them.

"Jim, what's wrong?" asked Andrea.

"It's just last night…after I told Mel that it was you who called… she looked upset," said Jim, "And I asked her why she didn't tell me right out front. And she said she didn't say anything because she didn't want me to be mad at her. I don't understand why she would think that. I mean, she knows that I love her and I would do anything for her."

"Well Jim," started Andrea, "I think you should talk to Melinda about it, but I think she wanted to keep it from you, because she loves you too."  
Jim smiled at this. "Thank you insightful one," said Jim jokingly.

Andrea laughed. "I'm glad I could help. Have a good day Jim."

"Thanks. You too. Bye."

"Bye."

They both hung up their phones. Andrea went into her room and started blow drying her hair. She wasn't really sure what the day had in store for her, but she didn't really care. She liked not knowing what was going to happen, as long as nothing bad happened. She hoped she would see Melinda at work today, but she didn't know if she would.

Jim hung up his phone and went over to the toaster to retrieve his breakfast. He finished eating quickly, and after he was done he went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. He took a quick glance at his watch. He still had a little more time before he had to leave for work so he decided to go check on Melinda. He figured she was still sleeping so he entered the bedroom quietly. He expected to find her lying down fast asleep, but instead he found that his wife was sitting straight up on the bed facing towards the window.

Jim stood in the doorway, not really sure what was going on. He walked closer to the bed, but her back was still towards him. Now that he was closer, he saw she was shaking. He listened closer and heard she was sobbing.

"Mel?" asked Jim, "Mel, what's wrong?"

Melinda turned around and faced Jim. Her eyes were red and puffy, and Jim could clearly tell that she had been crying. And for a while too. He sat on the bed next to her and asked her again what was wrong.

"Last night," said Melinda between sobs, "I couldn't really fall asleep, so I sat in bed and thought. About everything."

Jim was still trying to understand.

"Everything…with the new ghost?" He didn't really understand what she was talking about.

"No," said Melinda simply, "About us."

This caused Jim to become slightly concerned.

"What about us?" asked Jim.

"About how we'll never be normal," said Melinda, "The spirits are always going to be there. And I'll always have to help them. I won't be able to be a normal wife, who cleans the house and worries about the bills." Jim could tell she was getting really worked up.

"Hey!" said Jim, trying to calm her down, "Listen to me. If that's what normal is, then I don't want it."

This caused Melinda to look up, and she said, "But would you love me more? If I didn't have this gift?" She wasn't used to this insecure feeling, and she sure didn't like it. She wasn't really sure why she was acting like this, she knew Jim loved her no matter what, but she had been feeling this for a long time, and she just wanted to get it off her chest.

"There isn't one thing that I would change about you. You're beautiful, funny, independent. And you take on a hell of a lot more than anyone else ever could," said Jim, and he held Melinda's face with his hands, "I love you Melinda Gordon. Spirits or not."

Melinda looked at Jim, and she searched his eyes. She knew that he was telling the truth. She knew his eyes. They were the one way Melinda could tell if he was lying. Whenever he lied he was never able to look someone straight in the eye. But Jim was looking at her straight on, so much so, that it sent a chill down Melinda's back. She knew that the love they had for each other was unconditional.

"I love you too," said Melinda, as she and Jim hugged.

Melinda looked at the clock.

"Jim, you'd better get going. You're gonna be late," Melinda pointed out.

"Yeah. You're right. Oh, I talked to Andrea, and she said if you didn't feel like it you didn't have to go to work," said Jim.

He then received the 'are you serious' look from Melinda.

"I'm fine, and I'm going to work," said Melinda, matter-of-factly.

Jim smiled. "Yeah yeah. I figured."

"Have a good day at work," said Melinda.

Jim gave Melinda a goodbye kiss, and said, "You too babe," and he headed down the stairs, and outside to start his day.

Melinda took her time getting ready, because she knew it was going to be a long day. She planned to go see the Sullivan's after work, and she still really wasn't sure what her approach was going to be.

She finally finished getting ready, and by then it was 10:30. She went outside, and got into her car. She wondered if she would see Carly today. She wondered how things would go at the Sullivan's. She started the ignition, and she realized she didn't really care. She had a husband who truly loved her. Her best friend cared so much for her. And that was all she needed. She was accepted for who she really was, and that's what would get her through the day.

**YEAH, NOT VERY EVENTFUL, BUT NEXT ONE WILL BE.**

**PROMISE **

**JUST WANTED TO GET A TRANSITION IN.**

**&& REVIEW IF I SHOULD CONTINUE!**

**HAPPY WEEKEND && GO RED SOX **

**LOVE YOOZ!**

** 3 JESS **


	6. Ryan

**A/N : It's been a long long time, but I'm back! So sorry this update took so long. I've been so busy with senior year, which is almost over!! But again, I apologize for having to put this story on hold for so long. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.**

**This is Who We Are **

**  
Chapter 6:**

Melinda arrived at 'Same As it Never Was' Antiques in a few short minutes. She went through the front door, looking for Andrea. There were no costumers at the store at the moment, so Melinda figured she was in the back room. She was right.

Andrea had heard the door open, and thinking it was a costumer, she hurried back out front. She was shocked when she saw it was Melinda. She had thought after everything that had happened yesterday, she would just want to take it easy. Maybe come in in the afternoon, or even take the day off. But here she was. 10:43AM. Looking happy as ever.

Andrea didn't know how she did it. But she did.

"Hey you," said Andrea.

"Hey," replied Melinda.

"Look, about last night. I hope you don't take me calling Jim the wrong way. It's not that I didn't trust you would tell him. I was just worried," said Andrea.

"No Andrea," said Melinda, smiling, "I understand why you did it. I'm glad you did too."  
"You are?" she asked, confused, "Why?"

"I was getting cold feet. I wasn't going to tell him. But you called, and then he asked me about it. I couldn't hide it," she told her, "So thank you."

Andrea smiled at her. "Any time."

Melinda took of her coat and hung it in the back room, then rejoined Andrea in the other room.

"So, anything happen this morning?" asked Andrea.

This question could have meant anything. For normal people that is. Not for Melinda. She knew her friend was asking about ghosts.

"Nope," replied Melinda, "I haven't seen Carly yet today. I don't know if that's a good thing, or a bad thing."

"I'm sure she'll be back soon."  
"Yeah, but until then, I just can't sit around waiting for her."

Melinda paused a moment, realizing she hadn't told Andrea about her last encounter with Carly.

"You know, I saw Carly last night. After work, on the way to my car."

"What'd she say?"

"She told me it was Michelle who shot her," she informed her.

"Why?" asked Andrea, horrified.

"Well, I think that's what I'm going to have to find out. If what Carly says is true, then her death wasn't an accident. She was murdered. And until I can tell other people, she's going to be stuck here."

"What other people?" asked Andrea.

"Ryan," answered Melinda defiantly.

"Oh yeah. That answers everything," said Andrea sarcastically.

"Oh, stop it," said Melinda, jokingly, "Carly said she wants me to tell Ryan what happened. Maybe it was a friend, or a boyfriend maybe."

"Well good luck with finding mystery boy," said Andrea, and she went off to help a costumer who had just entered the store.

Melinda took this time to go to the back room, just to take a minute to relax. The computer was on, and the story she and Andrea had read about Carly the day before was still on the screen.

She sighed to herself, thinking about the trip to the Sullivan's that was still ahead. Her eyes fell onto the computer screen, and became attached on a word. Well, actually a name.

Ryan.

Ryan Sullivan. Michelle's father.

So this was it? Carly wanted her to tell Michelle's father that his daughter had killed her best friend.

She had no idea how she could do that. What would he say? Would he even believe her.

Maybe she was jumping to conclusions. Maybe that fact that his name was Ryan was a coincidence. But Melinda had a hard time believing in coincidences.

She has to find Carly now. She had to find out if this was what she wanted.

Melinda didn't like the situation before, but now she really didn't. She felt like she was going to throw up.

She got up, grabbed her coat and went into the other room to find Andrea ringing up the costumer who had entered the store a few minutes ago.

"Hey, you ok?" asked Andrea, looking at Melinda's troubled face.

"Yeah," said Melinda, letting out a breath she didn't know she was holding.

Then smiling she said, "I think I'm gonna take an early lunch break. Can you watch the store for a little while?"

"Yeah, of course," said Andrea.

"Thanks," said Melinda, hurrying out the door, and into her red Jeep.

She felt bad lying to Andrea about where she was going, but she couldn't risk Andrea calling Jim and telling him that his wife was going to tell a father his daughter was a murderer.

She decided she would stop home first, and see if Carly would show up there. She had to get the full story first. And she had to be sure that it was the right Ryan.

Then she had to convince Carly that there were other ways to help her cross over. Other ways that didn't involve Melinda telling Ryan flat out that it had been Michelle who shot Carly.

She just didn't know how yet.

**Wahoo! Kay, so it's not that long. But it'll get better.**

**Please review, and I'll update quicker!!**

**xx Jess**


	7. No Turning Back

****

A/N : Sorry it's been a while since the last update. I've been busy with graduation (no more high school!) and my wonderful new job, at Cold Stone.

****

Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.

****

This is Who We Are

Chapter 7:

Melinda arrived home in record time. There were some times that she wished there was some magic "ghost call" to make the spirits appear. But there wasn't, so all she could really do was wait. If she was lucky, she wouldn't have to wait long.

And she hoped she didn't. She didn't want to be away from the store for too long. She knew it would worry Andrea, and she might call Jim, and he would try to find her, and so on. It was just a situation she would rather not deal with.

She went to her computer and turned it on. She quickly brought up the story about Carly once again. There had to be some other Ryan. There had to be.

Melinda suddenly felt a presence in the room, and turned around to find herself facing Carly.

"Is this him?" asked Melinda, pointing to the screen, "Is Ryan Michelle's father?"

Carly didn't say anything, only nodded.

"How is this going to make things better?" asked Melinda, still stunned.

"Michelle's father never liked me. He always said I was a bad influence on her. He would make jokes, about how I should be more like his daughter. Now he thinks that I accidentally shot myself, and Michelle was just an innocent bystander. It's not fair. I want him to know that she did it," said Carly, angrily.

It was obvious to Melinda that Carly was getting very upset, so she decided the best thing she could do was at least go talk to Ryan. Maybe get his side of the story. The last thing she wanted on her hands was an angry, vengeful ghost.

"Alright. I'll go today after work. But I can't just come right out and tell him the truth," said Melinda, "You understand that, right?"

"Yeah, I get that," said Carly, "But at least it's a step in the right direction."

Melinda looked at the clock on the wall, and knew she needed to head back to the store. Carly must have picked up on this too, because when Melinda looked back to her, she was gone.

On the drive back to the store, she couldn't shake the nervous feeling she felt. She wasn't looking forward to seeing Michelle's father later. She had never told a father that his daughter was the murderer of her best friend, but she imagined it wouldn't go over very well.

She tried to push it to the back of her mind; at least until her workday was finished. She didn't want to arouse any suspicion out of Andrea.

She parked her car and entered the store smiling, as if everything in her world was picture perfect.

"Hey," said Andrea, greeting her, "How was lunch?"

"Not bad," said Melinda, "It was nice to get out and clear my head. Everything ok here?"

Melinda carried her coat to the back room, and since there was no one currently in the store, Andrea followed.

"No, actually. We were robbed when you were gone," said Andrea sarcastically.

"You know what I mean. I just felt bad bailing on you in the middle of the day," Melinda confessed.

"Melinda, please! It was really nothing. I'm capable of running things on my own. Besides, you needed a break."

It was times like this she was glad Andrea was her friend. And more importantly, that she knew her secret. She couldn't imagine having to work with someone who didn't know.

"Well, thank you," said Melinda sincerely, "Hey, do you want to take your break now? I know you can handle things, but I don't think you deserve to starve."

"Sure, if you don't mind. I won't be long. I'll probably just pick up something at Village Java. Do you want anything?" asked Andrea, grabbing her bag.

"No thanks," replied Melinda, "See you later."

And with that, Andrea was off. It was the early afternoon, a downtime for antique shops. So Melinda decided to make use of her time, and look up the Sullivan's address.

She went to the Grandview website, and did a 'people search.'

There were four R.Sullivan's in Grandview. But one was Robert, and one was Richard. So that left two. She read the story about Carly again, and was able to find the name of Ryan's wife; Linda.

She looked back at the addresses, and assumed that the second one was correct. It read,

Sullivan, R & L

1180 Riverside Road

Grandview, NY 10960

(845) 364-1755

She quickly wrote it down, and then found directions and printed them out. Once that had finished, she closed down the open windows. She made her way over to her purse, and slid the paper inside. She heard the door opening, so she made her way to the front of the store. It was only Andrea, and she had brought Melinda back some cookies to try to make her feel better.

The thoughtful gesture made Melinda smile, but she gladly took them. After all, she never really took an actual break for lunch, and she was hungry.

The rest of the afternoon went by in a blur. By the end of the night, they had made some sales, and finished the box of cookies. It would have been a great day, but Melinda still knew she had to complete the task that laid before her.

She said goodbye to Andrea, got in the car, and was on her way. After what felt like a lifetime, she arrived at the Sullivan residence. It was a nice house. A really nice house. Even though it was fairly late, it was very well lit up and Melinda could see the beautifully landscaped yard, and the expensive cars in the yard.

She got out of the car, and made her way to the front door. She hesitated before ringing the doorbell, but eventually she pressed the button.

She waited a moment, and heard footsteps coming to the door. Her brain was screaming at her to leave; to just go home. But her heart told her to stay. If this would give Carly closure, and would allow her to crossover, she would do it.

The door finally opened, and Melinda found herself looking at a teenage girl, roughly around Carly's age. She didn't look like a happy-go-lucky teenager. Instead she looked empty. She was looking at Melinda, but it was as if she was staring through her. Melinda made a guess that it was Michelle, but she didn't say anything.

The girl spoke up.

"Can I help you?"

****

Next chapter will introduce some new characters!

Thanks for sticking with me everyone!

Please review!

Love, Jess


	8. A Confrontation

****

A/N : I know I haven't updated in a longgg time, but my shifts at work are unbelievable. Not to mention getting everything ready for college, I haven't had time to write. But thanks for sticking with me!

Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any characters.

This is Who We Are

Chapter 8:

Melinda just stared at the girl for a moment, partly from shock, and partly because she was trying to think of something to say. When she couldn't come up with a genius idea, she decided to play it by ear.

"Hi, my name's Melinda Gordon," she said smiling, "I was looking for Ryan Sullivan. Is he home?"

"Yeah, he's home. What do you need him for?" replied the young girl.

Melinda had to do some quick thinking. She tried to remember back to the article; she tried to remember anything she had learned about the Sullivan's, most importantly Ryan. Then it hit her. He used to be a politician. She found her opportunity, and grabbed it.

"A friend of mine is going to be running for office for the next election, and she could really use some help. And I know that Ryan Sullivan is a real expert at winning elections," lied Melinda.

"Oh," said the girl simply, "I'll go get him."

She quickly went into the other room and shortly after returned.

"He'll be right out. He's just cleaning some stuff up," she told Melinda, "I'm Michelle by the way. Ryan's my dad."

"Nice to meet you," said Melinda as a man entered the room.

"Hi, I'm Ryan," he said, shaking Melinda's hand. Michelle took this as her cue to leave, and went upstairs.

"Nice to meet you, I'm Melinda," she replied.

"My daughter said you wanted to speak with me. What about?" he asked.

Melinda sighed a breath of relief, internally. Now she wouldn't have to work her way out of her little white lie.

"Actually Mr. Sullivan, I wanted to talk to you about the death of Carly Glen," said Melinda, slowly.

Ryan looked at her for a moment, and then walked into the living room, sat on a chair, and just stared straight ahead. Melinda followed him, taking a seat in a chair across from him.

"Why do you want to know about that?" he asked her.

"Well, I've come to be friends with the Glen's over the past few months, but they've never really told me what happened to Carly. I've read the papers, and there's no official story. I just wanted to hear your side of the story," said Melinda, slightly lying once again.

"Well. I never liked Carly. She was always with the boys...not the kind of girl I wanted my Michelle hanging around with. But Michelle saw something in her, so I just let it go. I wanted her to be happy, you know?"

Melinda just nodded, and he continued.

"It was a Friday night, also known to Michelle and Carly as 'girl's night.' It's this tradition they had since they were young. They would alternate sleepovers every week. At our house, then Carly's. Our house, Carly's house. And so on. So Michelle was going over to Carly's that night."

He took a breath before continuing.

"Her mother and I were at home, and we got a phone call late that night, and it was the police saying that there was an accident at Carly's house, but that Michelle was fine. So we both got up and got there as fast as we could. Michelle was fine, just a little shaken up. But Carly..." he trailed off, "I tried to ask Michelle what happened, but she wouldn't even talk. The police told me she had a gun, and it went off."

"What do you think happened?" asked Melinda.

"I think she was probably playing around with it, trying to get Michelle to do something she didn't want to do. And it went off. Serves her right," he replied.

"But you don't know for sure?" asked Melinda.

"No I don't," he said.

Unknown to both of them, Michelle had crept back down the stairs and was listening to everything they were saying. She moved slightly, and the floor creaked, causing the Melinda and Ryan to turn and look.

"Honey, do you have anything you want to tell her?" asked Ryan.

"Yeah, I do," she said, taking her father's seat as he exited the room. Once he was gone, Michelle turned to Melinda.

"So...that didn't sound so much like political conversation to me," she said smugly.

"Yeah. Sorry," said Melinda, "I just didn't want to upset you."

"Whatever. Don't worry about it," said Michelle, "So why are you here now? At night? Just decided to get the full story now? Couldn't wait till morning?"

Michelle wasn't giving Melinda many options. She could tell that this was a touchy subject.

"Carly's spirit came to me," said Melinda bluntly.

"What are you talking about?" asked Michelle confused.

"Carly's ghost came to me. She told me what really happened," said Melinda calmly.

Michelle started to laugh.

"Oh! You're one of those people. Can you see my future too?" asked Michelle, "or are you just a nutcase?"

Melinda cast her eyes downward for a moment before looking back to her.

"It's the truth. I know Carly didn't shoot herself."

"I can't believe I'm listening to this right now!" said Michelle.

"She wants people to know what really happened to her," Melinda tried to explain.

"Get out of my house," said Michelle coldly.

"The truth is going to come out one way or another," said Melinda.

"Get out!" yelled Michelle.

Ryan came back to the living room after hearing his daughter's outburst.

"I think that's enough for tonight. It's probably best if you leave now," he said to Melinda.

Melinda nodded and said, "Thanks for your time."

She opened the door and quickly left, leaving a screaming girl inside.

"Well," said Melinda to herself, "That couldn't have gone worse."

She climbed into her car, and started driving back home. She hadn't really found out all that much except for that she was pretty sure Carly's story about her death was true, Michelle was in serious denial, and Ryan thought Carly deserved what she got.

What a mess. No wonder Melinda had an awful headache. It only worsened as she heard her phone ring. She was in no mood to talk to anyone, so she let it go.

She pulled into her driveway a little while later, only to find Jim run out the front door, and over to the car. She opened the driver's door quickly and got out, finding herself embraced by Jim's arms.

"Nice to see you too," said Melinda.

"Where were you?" asked Jim, "I was getting worried."

"I can handle myself," she said to him, walking in the front door.

"Mel," he started, "where were you?"

"Doing some ghost business," she replied heading upstairs to her bedroom.

"Are you going to tell me about it?" he asked, following.

"Yes," she said defiantly, sitting on her bed. After a moment of silence, Jim stared at her and said, "Well?"

"But it's going to have to wait until the morning. My head is killing me, and I'm exhausted," she said, slightly smiling.

Jim smiled back, and headed off to the bathroom to get some Advil and water for her headache. When he went back to the room, Melinda had changed into her pajamas, and was sitting on the bed. She smiled when she saw him.

"You're too good to me," she said, gladly taking the painkillers.

"You deserve it," he said to her, kissing her gently on her forehead, "Now get some rest."

Melinda lay down, under all the blankets as Jim went to go get ready for bed. She finally felt relaxed, for the first time all day. She closed her eyes and let her mind slip away into the dream world, where all her worries were washed away.

She would deal with her ghost situation tomorrow. Right now, she just needed an escape.

****

I'll try to update more often!

Keep the reviews coming!

They keep me going!

Love, Jess


	9. The Truth Comes Out

-1**A/N: Still busy getting ready for college! I leave in 4 days, and have had no time to sit down and write. But here we go!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of it's characters.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 9:**

To Melinda, the morning came too soon. To Jim, it hadn't come fast enough. He had a rough night, being to preoccupied with wondering where Melinda had gone, and not been able to sleep well. He was really curious to know where she had gone to, but he knew she needed rest, so he let her sleep.

He awoke early that morning and decided to go downstairs. He went into the living room, and sat on the couch to do some thinking.

He hadn't been used to her running out at all hours of the night. For the past few weeks their lives had been…well, normal.

In all honesty, he hadn't liked it all that much. Life just seemed less interesting when there were no ghost stories to hear. Life seemed boring when he had no personal records to look up for Melinda.

But he had never said a word of this to her. Because she was happy. If she was happy without the ghosts, then he would be too.

He didn't realize how wrong he was until the morning before, when Melinda had told him that the only reason she was happy was because she thought that's what he wanted.

So they both liked the abnormal life that they shared. At times it made things more complex, but if they both wanted it, then Jim knew things would be okay in the end. He just wished there was more he could do to help her.

He turned to look to the stairs when he heard footsteps coming down them. A few seconds later Melinda had made her way into the living room, and was sitting on the couch with her husband.

"Morning sunshine," said Jim.

"Morning" said Melinda, leaning in for a good morning kiss, "Why are you sitting down here?"

"No reason. Got up early is all. Thought I'd do something productive with my morning," replied Jim.

"Since when is sitting on the couch productive?" asked Melinda.

"Well, I got up and walked down the stairs. That seems pretty productive to me," he said, smiling.

Melinda gave him a playful shove.

"So you're okay then?" she asked him.

After a brief pause, he replied, "Yeah. I'm good, but-"

"But you want to know what happened last night," Melinda finished for him, knowing to well he was going to pry sooner or later.

"Well, it would make me feel a lot better," he said.

"Fine, fine," she said walking into the kitchen, Jim following.

Melinda went to the fridge, and started rummaging through it. Jim knew she was stalling for time. Once it seemed she had looked through the entire fridge, she went into the freezer. Jim didn't say anything to her though. He knew it was best to let her tell him in her own time.

"Mel?" he asked, trying to get her attention.

"Why do you insist on keeping these pizza Frisbees?" she asked him, obviously trying to postpone talking about her visit to Ryan's house.

"Mel." he said. She rolled her eyes, almost as a reflex.

"Fine," she muttered, "I went to see the Sullivan's last night."

"By yourself?" asked Jim, trying not to sound too overprotective.

"Yes by myself. I can handle some things myself you know."

"I didn't mean it like that Mel."

"I know," she said, letting out a breath, "I'm sorry. I know you get worried when you're not in the loop."

"I worry because I care," said Jim.

Melinda couldn't help but laugh at his sweetness…or corniness. She couldn't tell which.

"Anyways," said Jim, "What happened there?"

"Well, for starters I found Ryan."

"You did? Who is he?"

"Michelle's father."

"Michelle…Michelle, Carly's friend?" asked Jim, more confused than ever.

"That's the one."

"What happened?"

"Well, when I got there Michelle answered the door. I told her I needed to see her father. So she called him in, no questions asked. I sat down with him, and told him I needed to talk to him about Carly. I asked him what happened. He basically told me he thought it was all Carly's fault, that she was a bad influence on Michelle."

Melinda took a breath before continuing.

"Then Michelle wanted to talk. And there was really no way working around what I knew, so I came out and told her Carly's ghost came to me, and told me the truth what happened. She got really angry, and started yelling. Her father heard her yelling, which is when I left."

After processing what she had just told him, Jim spoke.

"So, you think what Carly told you was the truth then? About Michelle shooting her?"

"Yeah, I really do," said Melinda sighing.

An awkward silence then followed, and Jim could tell she was thinking about something.

"Mel," he said sternly.

"What?" she asked innocently.

"Mel. You're not going back there."

"Jim, I have to!"

"You can't! For god's sake Mel. You caused the man's child to have an emotional breakdown. There's no way he's letting you in his house anyways," said Jim.

Melinda didn't have a response to this, because she knew Jim was right. What if Michelle had told her father what she had said? Not only had she claimed to see Carly's ghost, but she had accused the poor girl of murder. If she had told her father, there was no way Melinda would be allowed back in the house. But she had to try. She had to tell Ryan. If not, there would be no way of getting Carly to crossover.

"Mel, just promise me you won't go back there," said Jim, seriously.

Melinda looked up from the ground, which she hadn't noticed she was even staring at.

"Fine. I won't go back there," said Melinda. It felt bad to lie to Jim, but it had to be done.

"Thank you," said Jim, pulling her into a hug.

"Well, I better get ready," said Melinda.

"Yeah, me too," replied Jim.

"Dibs on the shower!" squealed Melinda as she turned and ran up the stairs to the bathroom. Jim laughed, and followed. But she won. And even if he ended up winning, he would have let her go first. Jim knew better than to stand in the way of a woman and the bathroom in the morning.

Shortly after they were both ready for work, and left the house to head to their jobs.

As Melinda was approaching the doors to the antique shop, she spotted Andrea crossing the street. Melinda decided to wait for her before unlocking. Andrea waited until the traffic had slowed, and crossed the street, over to her friend.

"Morning," said Andrea.

"Morning," responded Melinda, who had now started to unlock the door. Once it was unlocked the two women went inside. Melinda turned on the lights, and Andrea flipped the sign so it said 'Open.' Once everything was all settled they took their seats behind the counter and talked. Like they did every morning.

"So, what'd you do last night after work?" asked Andrea.

"What makes you think I did anything?" asked Melinda.

"Well, the fact that Jim called me last night, asking if I'd seen you," replied Andrea.

"He called you? He didn't tell me that," said Melinda.

"I told him you were probably fine, that you were probably just doing something to help Carly," Andrea told her.

"Hey!" exclaimed Melinda, "What if I wasn't fine? What if something bad had happened to me? Do you always assume that I'm okay if my husband calls you at night, telling you I'm not home yet?"

"I figured you could handle yourself," said Andrea laughing.

"Last night," started Melinda, "I went to visit Ryan."

"You found out who he was?" asked Andrea, "Was it a boyfriend? Or a brother?"

"Ryan is Michelle's father," said Melinda.

"What?" asked Andrea, "Why in the world would Carly want you to tell Michelle's father that his daughter killed her?"

"Because, according to her, Ryan never liked Carly, and was always saying she should be more like Michelle. She just wants him to know that she wasn't perfect, and that Carly wasn't as bad of a person as he thought," she replied.

"Wow. That puts you in a pretty awkward situation, huh? So what happened with Ryan?"

"Well, I asked him for his side of what happened. And it was basically Carly's a bad influence, she deserved what she got. Then I talked to Michelle, and told her I knew the truth because Carly's spirit had come to me."

"And how did that go over?"

"Not so well," said Melinda, "I don't think she believed me when I told her about Carly. But when I told her I knew what really happened, she started yelling and screaming, and Ryan came back and told me to leave. So I did."

"Wow," said Andrea, once again, "So now what?"

"Well, I have to go back there eventually and talk to Ryan."

"What about Michelle?" asked Andrea.

"I don't know. I mean, I think I should talk to her, but she doesn't want to listen to anything I have to say."

"Make her listen," said Andrea simply.

"Right, and how am I supposed to do that? She probably wouldn't even let me in her house. She'd probably just shut the door in my fa-" Melinda stopped abruptly when something caught her eye outside. She got up off her chair and walked over to the window to get a closer look. There, sitting on a bench by the monument was a young girl.

She was angry looking. Empty almost. And Melinda knew that empty look anywhere.

"Michelle," she muttered under her breath.


	10. Agression

**A/N: So I'm in college now, and finding time to write this is hard! But I have some time now.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of it's characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 10:**

Melinda turned around and looked at Andrea.

"Well, what are you waiting for?" asked Andrea, "Go!"

Melinda smiled, thankful to have a friend like Andrea who understood her position. She opened the door, and said a quick 'thank you' to Andrea as she quickly walked outside. Shutting the door behind her, she quickly crossed the street.

She wanted to get to Michelle before she noticed her, and ran away. She managed to make her way over to the bench, just as Michelle turned around to face her. As soon as she did, Michelle started to get up.

"Michelle, wait!" cried Melinda. But Michelle kept walking away. Melinda followed, picking up her pace to keep up with the young girl. She finally caught up with her, and cut her off.

"What do you want?" asked Michelle coldly.

"I need to talk to you," said Melinda, "Please. It's important."

"More important than seeing ghosts?" asked Michelle smugly.

Melinda said nothing, but just looked at her.

"Fine," said Michelle, rolling her eyes, "I have a few minutes."

They walked back to the bench where they had just come from, and they both sat down. Michelle made it a point not to face Melinda. She simply looked straight ahead and watched the people go by. Melinda didn't really know where to start and she figured she wouldn't be getting much help from Michelle.

"So what's so important?" asked Michelle.

The tone of her voice sent chills down Melinda's spine. She couldn't understand how such a young person could be filled with so much hate. Then she thought about it again, and figured if she killed her best friend, and lied about it for years, she probably wouldn't be a happy person either.

"Look. I'm not lying to you. About seeing Carly's ghost," said Melinda, "Would I be going through all this trouble if I was?"

Michelle turned her focus to Melinda.

"I guess not. But you never know," said Michelle uncertainly.

"Carly came to me. And told me what you did."

"Well then why are you telling me?" asked Michelle close to tears, "Obviously I know that I did it. I don't need a reminder."

"Because she wants me to tell your father," said Melinda quietly.

"Are you insane?" Michelle stood up, enraged. "I mean, really! Are you trying to ruin my life?"

"Michelle, it's not like that. I just-" began Melinda.

"Look, I'm sorry for what I did. But I can't undo it now." She was yelling by now, "What good is telling my father going to do? He'll just hate me. It won't make anything better."

"It's what Carly wants. It's the only way for her to crossover," explained Melinda.

"Oh right. What? So she'll go to 'the light?'" Michelle was getting more and more upset. "Who hired you? Was it the police?"

"Michelle, if the police hired me, you would have been arrested already. You just admitted you killed her." Melinda was trying to talk low, because they were starting to attract an audience. "I told you, I'm only doing this because it's what Carly wants."

"I don't care. Carly's dead. It doesn't matter what she wants. There's no way for you to know what happened. Someone told you."

"Really? Who? I'm pretty sure there was no one else there."

Michelle had fallen into the trap. But she refused to talk about this anymore. And there was no way she was going to tell her father what happened.

"Listen. Just leave me alone. And don't ever come near me, or my father again."

"Michelle, wait," said Melinda, trying to stop her.

"I'm going to school, ok? So just…go." She turned quickly and walked away. The people, who had gathered, quickly dispersed, leaving Melinda sitting on the bench, not knowing what to do.

She got up and made her way back to the antique shop. On her way there, an old man handed her a dollar bill folded over twice.

"That was very convincing. Bravo!"

Melinda smiled at the man, and crossed the street. Andrea was there waiting for her, and she opened the door as Melinda entered.

"Well, from the way it looked here, things didn't go so well," said Andrea.

"They couldn't have gone much worse," said Melinda sighing, taking a seat behind the register.

"What'd she say?" asked Andrea, almost afraid to ask.

"Well, basically, it was the 'I don't believe you' and 'Stay away from me and my family' story."

"Yeah, she did look pretty mad."

"And you couldn't even hear her. She was yelling."

"I figured. You had quite an audience lined up out there," said Andrea smiling.

"Great. As if people don't think I'm strange enough as it is. On the bright side, some guy gave me a dollar. He said I was very convincing," she said, trying to lighten the mood.

"Well that's something. That way if the store ever ends up going out of business you have something to fall back on," she said, smiling at her friend.

Melinda smiled and laughed, feeling slightly better.

The rest of the day went on normally. A few things were sold here and there. There was a close call over by the China sets when a woman brought her two children into the store. It was only mid-afternoon, but Melinda was feeling wiped out.

"You can go home you know," Andrea said to her, noticing how tired she looked.

"I'm seriously considering it," she said, "But I feel bad leaving you by yourself. I've been doing it a lot too."

Andrea smiled, "Don't worry about it. Go home, get some rest. Call me later. And tell Jim what happened today, ok?"

"Yeah, yeah. I will," she said as she gathered her things.

"I mean it!" said Andrea, as Melinda headed towards the door, "If you don't, I will."

"I will!" she said smiling, and headed to her car. As she turned the ignition, she looked at her watch. It was half past one, which meant Michelle would still be in school. She hated betraying Jim like this, but she knew she had to go see Ryan.

She wasn't even sure if he would be home, but it was worth a shot. If he wasn't, she would go home, like she told Andrea she would. If he was, she would talk to him, and go home. She wouldn't be home late, so Jim wouldn't suspect anything. It was a foolproof plan.

She made her way back to 1180 Riverside Road, and she saw a car in the driveway. She took a deep breath before getting out of her red jeep, and walking to the front door. She rang the doorbell, and after a few seconds, she found herself face to face with Ryan Sullivan.

"Mr. Sullivan, please don't shut the door. I really need to talk to you." To this, he laughed.

"Ahh, Melinda. Please come in." She smiled, but was somewhat confused. The last time she had seen him, she had caused his daughter to throw a tantrum. Why was he treating her so nicely?

"Have a seat," he said, motioning to the couch. She sat down and he took a seat in the chair across from her.

"Mr. Sullivan-" she began.

"Please call me Ryan," he interrupted.

"Ok…Ryan. I really hope you're not still upset about my last visit. I really didn't mean any harm," she explained.

"Don't worry about it. I sat down with Michelle after, and she told me that you see ghosts. Is that true?"

"Actually, yes. I've seen Carly's spirit. That's why I came to find you. Carly wanted me to tell you what really happened."

"Get out of town!"

"No. It's true. And I need to tell you what really happened so that she can crossover."

"I already know what happened. Michelle explained it all to me," he said.

"I'm sure she told you her version. But with all due respect, that's not what really happened."

The front door opened, and Michelle walked in. Oblivious to the fact her father was in the living room with Melinda she yelled, "Dad! I'm home!"

"Michelle, I'm in the living room. Please come here."

Michelle was confused, but made her way to the living room. When she saw Melinda, she lost it.

"I told you to stay away!" she said with her voice raised.

"Michelle, calm down. Melinda told me you lied about the night Carly died," he said to her.

"Well I didn't. I told you the truth. I would never lie to you."

"That's what I thought. So, Miss. Gordon, please. Tell me what _really _happened."

"Yeah Melinda, tell him," Michelle said.

"Michelle was the one who shot Carly," she said, not wanting to look at Ryan. She couldn't see his reaction, but she heard him tell Michelle to go upstairs.

"Are you trying to be funny Miss. Gordon?" He asked, rising from his seat.

"No sir," she said, standing up, "I'm telling you what Carly told me."

"And it never occurred to you that she was the one lying?" he asked, getting increasingly angrier.

"Michelle told me she did it." The next thing she knew, she felt herself hitting the floor.

"Don't you ever accuse my little girl of being a murderer!" he screamed. Her face was throbbing, and she felt blood dripping out of her nose. He rolled his eyes at her. "Let's finish this in the basement. My wife will be upset if she sees blood on the carpet."

She tried to get away from him but he was too strong. He picked her up easily and brought her to the basement. He dropped her on the cold, barren floor.

"Now, maybe you'll rethink what you said about my daughter," he said to her.

"Mr. Sullivan, I'm telling you because Carly wants you to know she wasn't as bad of a person as you thought she was."

"My daughter didn't kill anyone!" he yelled again, kicking her in the stomach. She couldn't do anything to defend herself, so she tried her best to curl up into a ball, as she silently cursed herself for not listening to Jim. She couldn't stop the tears from flowing, and as they fell down her face, they mixed with the blood that was coming from her nose.

"Do you understand me?" he asked. She nodded, but she couldn't bring herself to look at him. He grabbed her by the hair, and punched her in the face.

"Look at me when you answer me!" He pushed her head back to the ground.

As her head made contact with the concrete floor, she felt the shock of the impact ripple through her whole body. All she wanted was Jim to come save her. She tried to focus on his face, but eventually she faded into darkness.


	11. Trapped

**A/N: Happy almost Halloween!**** Thanks for the reviews guys! As always this story is for you guys, and your reviews keep me going!!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of it's characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 11:**

She was cold. It was the first thing she noticed, even before opening her eyes. She would have to tell Jim to turn the heat up. She rolled over, but found she was greeted with empty air. Melinda's eyes snapped open, and she quickly sat up. She almost immediately regretted this action, as she was greeted with a painful headache. She was disoriented and confused. She took a deep breath, and tried to recall what had happened. She looked around the barren room she was in. It was clearly a basement.

'But why would I be in a basement?' thought Melinda. Then as if it were a giant avalanche, everything came flooding back. She went to visit Ryan. She told him the truth. And here she was.

Her head was still throbbing, and she could tell her stomach was bruised. Badly. She carefully pulled herself up, looking around. She didn't remember Ryan leaving, so he could still be down there somewhere. But, then again, she didn't know how long she had been out for. She looked around, and when she was sure there was no one else in the basement, except for her, she climbed the stairs quietly, making her way toward the door. She placed her shaking, blood covered hands on the doorknob and turned it. But the door wouldn't budge.

"No…" whispered Melinda. She was about to start pounding on the door, but she figured it would just get her into more trouble. She stumbled back down the stairs and sat down against a wooden beam in the middle of the floor. She had no idea what she was going to do.

She didn't even know what time it was, or what day. There were no windows she could look out of. She was trapped. No one even knew where she was.

But Melinda couldn't afford to panic. She had to think of something, especially before Ryan came back. But with the only door locked, and no windows to speak of, she really wasn't sure what to do.

She was pacing back and forth when she felt a presence behind her.

"He'll kill you," said the girl, who was facing the wall.

"Carly?" asked Melinda.

The girl turned around, and it was indeed Carly.

"I never mean for this to happen to you. I'm sorry," said Carly.

"It's not your fault. Don't worry everything will be fine," said Melinda, mostly trying to reassure herself. She honestly had no idea how everything would be ok.

"No it's not," said Carly, "He's going to kill you. You need to get out of here." Carly was starting to get scared too, and Melinda could tell.

"Yeah, well I'm working on that," she said, surveying the basement once again. When she turned back Carly was gone.

She sat back down on the floor trying to force her brain to come up with something. When you're in trouble, what do you do?

Then it hit her. The phone. She knew she had her phone with her before. She checked her pockets but it was gone. But that didn't get her hopes down. She searched the whole basement, looking for it. Eventually she found it, hidden underneath an old green and yellow lawn chair.

She smiled, and let out a sigh of relief. She looked at the clock on the front screen and saw that it was half past seven. She did a double take. She had been there for six hours. She needed to call Jim, even though she knew he would be angry. She'd rather have an angry husband who she lied to, than a angry father who's daughter had been accused of murder.

The phone had been set to silent, and when she opened it, she saw she had 13 missed calls from Jim. She quickly called Jim's cell phone. He should be home by now, but she didn't want to take any chances by calling the house phone and having him not be at home.

The phone hadn't even rung one whole ring before Jim picked up.

"Mel? Where are you?"

She started to cry as she heard his voice, because she knew everything was going to be ok.

"Mel?"

"I'm here," she answered, choking on her tears.

"Where are you? Andrea called, and said you left around one thirty," he said, getting nervous.

* * *

_Jim had arrived home a little after seven. He was surprised to not see Melinda's car in the driveway. __Once inside t__he house, he called for Melinda, but found himself in an empty house. __In the kitchen he saw the red light blinking on the answering machine. He pressed play, and was soon listening to Andrea's voice._

_"Hey Jim, it's Andrea. It's like..one thirty. I just wanted to let you know __Melinda was kind of tired and she decided to go home. She ran into Michelle today, so make sure you talk to her about it. That's pretty much __it. Tell Melinda I said feel better. I'll see you guys later."_

_The machine beeped and that was the end of the message. __One thirty? That was hours ago. Jim immediately called Melinda, but there was no answer. _

_"Damnit!" he exclaimed. He quickly dialed Andrea's number._

_"Hello?" _

_"Andrea, it's Jim."_

_"Hey Jim. __How's Melinda feeling?" she asked. _

_"She's not here," said Jim._

_"She left at one thirty. Didn't you get my message?" Andrea was beginning to get worried._

_"Yeah, I did. But she's not here. Neither is her car. Can you think of anywhere she would go?" _

_"I have no idea. I'm on my way over," said Andrea, out the door before she even hung up the phone._

_

* * *

_

"I'm at Ryan Sullivan's house," she said, slightly wincing.

"Mel! I told you not to go there. Come home right now!" exclaimed Jim.

"I can't," she said. She heard someone walking upstairs.

"Why not? I don't care what this ghost wants. I don't trust this guy," said Jim, getting angry. He loved Melinda, and her gift. But sometimes she was so stubborn when it came to helping them.

"I'm trapped," said Melinda, lowering her voice.

"Trapped at his house?" asked Jim. Andrea, who was sitting next to him, opened her eyes wide, in disbelief.

"Yes," whispered Melinda.

"Are you hurt?" he asked. But he didn't get a response. The basement door had opened. And Ryan was standing there.

"Mel? Are you hurt?" Jim demanded. She knew Ryan would find her if she didn't move. Melinda placed the phone against her chest to muffle the sound of her panicking husband. She tried to maneuver her way around the miscellaneous piles of junk that filled the basement to find a place to hide.

"Melinda, I know you're here." He had made his way down the stairs and was standing on the hard floor. He started walking forward. If she could move fast, Melinda could run from behind him and go up the stairs.

She brought the phone down to her side, her arms getting ready to help her run. She could hear Jim yelling into the phone, and unfortunately, so could Ryan.

She took off on a run, but Ryan was too quick. He grabbed her ankle causing her to trip on the stairs, hurting her already bruised stomach. She yelled in pain.

"MEL?" He was yelling louder than ever.

"Trying to call someone to come to your rescue? Not very smart."

His eyes moved to her hand, where the phone was. She knew he was going to take it. She had to think fast.

"1180 Riverside Road!" she yelled into the phone, "Jim, please help me!"

"Shut up!" He yelled hitting her again. He grabbed the phone, and slammed it shut. Just to make sure, he threw it against the wall, sending it flying into a bunch of little pieces.

She was terrified. She couldn't move. She couldn't think. All she could do was lie there. And wait for Jim, or anyone to come to her rescue.

* * *

Back at the house, Jim and Andrea were already out the door, and getting into Jim's car. He had called the police and told them that his wife was being attacked, and he gave them the address Melinda had yelled to him. He hoped the police would get there first and take care of Ryan. Jim was so angry, there was no telling what he would do to him.

Andrea was seated besides Jim in the passenger seat nervously ripping at the paper with the address on it. She knew Melinda sometimes was put in dangerous situations, but she never thought something like this would happen. She heard Jim's reactions on the phone and she didn't like the sound of it one bit.

Jim had explained everything to Andrea as they rushed out the door into the cool air. She was more worried than ever. Her best friend was alone, scared and hurt. And there was nothing she could do.

They reached the Sullivan house quicker than either one had expected. They had only been driving about five minutes, only slightly above the speed limit. Jim parked the car in the driveway, and quickly got out, with Andrea only one step behind.

At the door, the thought of ringing the doorbell or knocking went right through Jim's head and he tried the doorknob first. It was locked, but it was worth a shot. It was Andrea who noticed a door on the back porch. They ran across the landscaped yard, and to their luck, the door was unlocked.

Jim opened it, and followed by Andrea, they both entered the house through the kitchen. Things were oddly quiet. Jim didn't like it, and the look on Andrea's face said she didn't like it either.

Suddenly they heard a blood curling scream, and Jim knew right away it was Melinda. Mostly because she was the only one he knew of being attacked in this house, and secondly he had heard her scream enough times to know he distinct pitch.

Jim made a mad dash to the stairs heading into the basement, but Andrea made a move to stop him.

"Jim, I know you're worried. I am too. But think about it. What can you really do to this guy to stop him? You don't have a gun or anything," said Andrea, on the verge of tears.

Then, as if the heavens had opened, the police broke through the front door. Jim quickly made his way over, and told them they were in the basement.

* * *

Melinda was about to give up. Something in Ryan had snapped and he was more violent than ever. Amongst the piles of junk he had found a baseball bat, and decided to have some fun.

"Now," he asked her, "What have we learned from all this?"

At this point Melinda was too weak to speak, and tried her best to form herself into a ball and just wait for it to be over. But it didn't work.

"Well, that's the wrong answer," and he brought the bat crashing down onto Melinda's right arm with a sickening crunch. The crunch was followed by a scream. The scream was followed by footsteps pounding on the floor above.

"Oh, looks like your cavalry has arrived," he said sarcastically.

Melinda was fighting to remain conscious, but the threat of overwhelming darkness wouldn't go away. Everything hurt. She just wanted to give up. But she needed to know everything would be ok.

There were footsteps on the stairs now. Then a shot rung out, and she heard something fall to the ground. She couldn't move her head to see what it was, but she had her hunches.

"Oh my god," a female voice said. It sounded familiar to Melinda. Then she realized it was Andrea.

"Mel?" a male voice this time. Jim. Her Jim. He came for her. It was going to be ok.

He felt him put her head into his lap, and run his fingers through her hair.

He was there now, and she knew it would be ok. Everything was going to be ok.

"I'm sorry," she said to him, her voice barely audible. Her eyes shut and Jim felt her go limp. He sat there shocked for a minute. She was alright a second ago. Alright as she could be. But she had been talking.

Now it wasn't ok. But Jim wasn't going to let this happen. He placed her head gently on the ground and started CPR.

"I need some help down here!" he yelled.


	12. Promise

**A/N: I hope everyone had an amazing Halloween! I've been getting some messages sent to me with questions about myspace and facebook. Yes, I have both. E-mail me at for my facebook. My myspace is: ****Thanks again for the reviews. They really make writing this story so much more enjoyable!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of it's characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 1****2**

When the police had learned they were responding to an attack, they had naturally contacted Emergency Medical Services to arrive at 1180 Riverside Road as soon as possible. So not long after the police had arrived, an ambulance pulled up. The technicians inside were ready and waiting to be told that their assistance was needed. They had no idea what to expect: They were just told there was a possible attack.

"I need some help down here!" They could hear the call from outside. There were only two of them. Paul was the more experienced of the two. Jake was just a rookie. He had only been out a few times. Paul took the lead, running towards the basement, his partner quickly following behind. Their feet thundered down the stairs.

"Jim?" asked Paul. They had been friends even before they worked together. Since high school. They were like brothers. Jim hadn't even turned around. He couldn't. He was too busy trying to get his wife to breathe.

"Why did they call us if you were already here?" He was confused. They don't usually dispatch more than one unit to a scene unless it was for something catastrophic. And to Paul, it didn't look that bad.

Jim hadn't answered. He was too busy administering CPR on the female victim.

"Jim?" he asked again. With tears in his eyes, Jim turned to face his friend.

"It's Mel." No other words needed to be spoken. Paul knew Melinda well. They had been friends for as long as Melinda knew Jim. Paul started work right away, Jake quickly mimicking his movements. At first, Jim wouldn't move. He didn't trust anyone else with her. Jake was unsure of what to do. Paul signaled to him to continue with the CPR.

Paul went to Jim, and knelt down so he was eye to eye with him.

"Look, I know you're worried. But I promise you, I won't let anything happen to her. But you gotta step back and let us do our work. Ok?" He searched his friends eyes for some kid of answer. He finally got a brief nod from Jim, and he stepped back to let them work on her.

Andrea had made her way down the stairs, through the police, and over to Jim. Jim immediately pulled her into an embrace in an attempt to stop her sobbing.

"She'll be okay," said Andrea through tears, trying to reassure herself even more than Jim, "She'll be okay."

Though he would never admit it, Jim was scared. This couldn't happen. Not now. The paramedics were still going hard at the CPR, but they hadn't gotten anything as small as a gasp. She couldn't stay down much longer. If she did, they would have to call it.

* * *

It was bright. She could barely see. She didn't know where she was. Where was Jim? She had just seen him, hadn't she? She knew she did. She heard his voice too. But where was he now? There was nothing except for brightness.

A girl appeared in front of the light, looking like a silhouette. It was Carly.

"Melinda, you have to go back. It's not time yet," she said.

"It hurts," said Melinda, sounding much like a child.

"I know. But Jim's hurting now. And so is Andrea. They all need you still. You can't give up." Carly was almost pleading with her. She felt responsible. After all, she had been the one who asked her to find Ryan.

"How do I get back?" asked Melinda.

"Just concentrate. Listen in the back of your head. You can hear everyone calling for you. Just hold onto that," she said, desperately trying to help her.

Melinda shut her eyes, and tried as hard as she could to find Jim's voice. Anyone's voice. She couldn't. She opened her eyes, to find Carly still there.

"I can't."

"Yes, you can."

Carly was becoming blurry. She felt strange, like she was being pulled apart. The light was gone. And she was once again consumed by darkness.

* * *

A cough. It was music to Jim's ears. Everyone's ears. She was breathing. The cough was followed by a few more. Jake quickly started an IV in her left arm. Her right arm was set into a temporary brace. It was clearly broken, and they wanted to do their best to assure that the bones didn't move too much.

Jim rushed over to her. He grabbed her left hand and held it tight.

"God Mel. Please don't ever do that again." He was so relieved she was awake, and breathing.

"I'm sorry," she said once again. She was whispering, but it was better than nothing.

The IV was in, her arm was set. She was picked up and placed onto the backboard. Paul and Jake carried it up the stairs, and placed it on the wheeling stretcher that had been brought into the living room.

The police must had called for another ambulance, because another one had arrived. It was for Ryan. It made Jim angry that they were going to help him. He had just tried to kill someone. But he put his feelings of anger behind him. He had to focus on Melinda right now. She wasn't out of the woods yet.

"You riding with us?" Paul called to Jim.

Jim looked at Andrea. They couldn't both fit.

"Jim, go," she said to him. He handed her the keys to his car.

"Thank you." After a brief hug they went their separate ways. Jim climbed into the back of the ambulance and sat next to Melinda, who was lying helplessly in the bed.

"Jim, it really hurts," she said. The morphine hadn't kicked in yet, and Jim knew it would take a little while longer to work. From what he could see, her injuries were pretty extensive. She had cuts all over her arms and legs. He could see black and blue splotches beginning to show on her skin.

"I know baby. It'll feel better soon. I promise." He took the hand that he was so tightly holding, and gave it a soft kiss. "I promise."

The rest of the ride to the hospital carried on much like that. Jim was continuously reassuring Melinda over and over that everything would be alright.

So many thoughts were running through Melinda's head. The pain had finally started to subside, thankfully. She told herself that if she just concentrated on Jim's voice everything would be ok.

Melinda wasn't sure how long the ride took. She knew it couldn't have been that long, but it felt like a lifetime. She just wanted this ordeal to be over. She had so many questions. But she knew they would have to wait.

She felt the ambulance come to a stop, and she could hear the car door open and close. The back doors of the ambulance suddenly opened, and Jim and Melinda were greeted by the bright lights of the ambulance bay.

The stretcher she was lying on was pulled out of the vehicle by Paul and Jake. She lost her grip on Jim's hand, as he was still in the ambulance. Lying on the stretcher, looking up at the sky, her vision became clouded with doctors huddling around her. To Melinda, it was just a big scene of confusion, because the only difrection she could look in was up. She could no longer see Jim, and she started to panic.

"Jim?" she called out to him, but her voice was drowned out by the voices of all the doctors talking to one another. They continued to wheel her into the building, still calling for her beloved.

She was scared. She didn't want to be alone. She started to cry. Tears were rolling down her cheeks, over the older, already dried ones. The doctors had finally arrived at their destination: Some area in the emergency room with different machines and tools. The walls were painted a bright shade of yellow, trying to bring happiness to the grim room. It wasn't really working.

Doctors were poking and prodding at her. Asking if it hurt when they poked. Asking if it hurt when they hit there. She wanted to yell out, "Of course it hurts! You're poking me." But she couldn't. She was too tired. She just wanted Jim by her side.

Outside of the trauma room, a security guard, whose nametag read 'Evan,' wouldn't allow Jim in.

"I'm her husband, and a paramedic," he tried to explain to them, "You have to let me in."

"I'm sorry sir, but the doctors insist no one else be in the room at this time."

Jim was running out of ideas. He knew he had to get into see her. But this Evan wouldn't budge.

Inside the fake yellow room, Melinda was growing increasingly more nervous. Where was he? He wouldn't leave, would he? The doctors were beginning to scare her. She heard them mention something about surgery, and she lost it.

"JIM!!!!" she was screaming for him now. That was enough for Jim. He was past Evan in a second, and next to her. He grabbed her hand that was flailing around, searching for his.

She turned her head to face him. To really see him. She smiled through her tears.

"Please don't leave," she said to him, choking on tears.

"I'm not going anywhere. I promise." He traced his thumb along her cheek, wiping away the trail of tears.

"Mr. Clancey?" One of the doctors was calling for him, motioning for him to step outside. Jim nodded in response.

"Mel, I have to go talk to the doctors, but I'll be right back, ok? Andrea should be here soon."

"Where did she go?" She had been in so much pain she hadn't even known that Andrea knew what had happened.

"She followed the ambulance in my car from the Sullivan's," he explained to her, "I'll be right back though."

"Ok," she whispered, as he planted a kiss on her forehead.

He headed to the door, which the doctor was holding open for him. He walked out into the hallway, the doctor following, closing the door behind him.

Jim turned and faced him, and braced himself for the harsh truth that was Melinda's health.


	13. Recovery

**A/N: Hey everyone! I hope you all had an amazing Thanksgiving!**** For this chapter, there's a lot of medical discussions, and I did research for hours to make it as realistic as possible. I'm sure it's not perfect, but I did what I could. ****Thanks to my sister for proofreading this for me!**

**Disclaimer: I don't o****wn Ghost Whisperer or any of it****s characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 13:**

Standing outside the trauma room, Jim took a deep breath before the doctor opened his mouth. He was a tall man, almost having to duck as he walked through the door. He had blonde hair, but it was so dark, it was bordering on brown. He wore a smile on his face, but it wasn't an annoying fake smile. It was a smile of understanding and compassion.

"Mr. Clancey," he spoke, "I'm Doctor Manning. I'm an attending here in the ER, and I'm in charge of your wife."

"Is she going to be ok?" he asked.

The question had been hanging in the air, ever since he saw her on the floor of the basement.

"Ultimately, yes. It's just going to take a bit of time for her to fully heal," the doctor explained. Jim let out a sigh of relief and ran his hands through his hair.

"Thank god," he muttered, "What's actually wrong with her?"

He was afraid to ask, but the doctor said she would be all right.

"Why don't we have a seat over here?" Doctor Manning, led Jim over to some vacant blue padded seats in the hallway. The doctor motioned to the empty seat, indicating for Jim to sit down. Once they were both seated, the doctor took Melinda's charts out of their metal case, glanced them over.

"Look, I'd appreciate it if you were upfront with me. I don't want you to tell me what I want to hear. I want to hear what's real," said Jim.

"I would never be anything else," he replied.

"Thank you," said Jim, with a small nod of his head.

"The paramedics told us that she was unconscious when they arrived, but since the CAT scan and X-ray show no other signs of permanent damage she shouldn't have a problem remembering anything, which is good news," he began, "She'll probably have headaches, but they can be fixed with ibuprofen."

Jim nodded in understanding, as Dr. Manning moved his eyes to the chart again, reading over the next section.

"Her nose is broken, but it's just a simple break, so the bone hasn't been displaced in any way. So if there's any pain, again, ibuprofen will work. It might be a little swollen, otherwise it should heal on its own."

Jim nodded again, and smiled slightly. Things were shaping up to be better than he expected. Of course he was still worried about Melinda, but so far nothing was life threatening. Headaches and a swollen nose.

On the way to the hospital he had been running scenarios through his head. He certainly wasn't trying to think of the worst possible scenario, but it kept trying to break into his train of thought. What if it was something irreparable? What if she needed surgery, and something went wrong?

Of all these pictures that Jim had been imagining, this was one he had hoped for. Of course he had wished nothing had happened to her, but he knew when he saw her, that it simply wasn't the case.

He gave his head a brief shake and turned his attention back to the doctor who was sitting to his right.

"Her arm is definitely broken, but thankfully, it's only a simple break. So we'll give her a partial cast to stabilize the bones and give her some pain medication. It'll have to stay on for 6 weeks, but it won't be that bad. She was lucky," he said.

"I know." Jim couldn't find any other words. She was going to be alright. That was all that mattered to him.

"She has a lot of bruises, but they'll heal over time. We did however, find massive bruising to her abdomen. We did another CAT scan and found that some damage had been done to her liver. We've done a lot of simple tests, and we're just waiting to hear back from the lab."

Now this caught Jim's attention. Maybe he spoke too soon.

"Damage to her liver? How bad is it?" He wasn't a doctor, but he was a paramedic. And he knew that liver damage was nothing to joke about.

"I wouldn't panic yet. Right now, we're trying to resuscitate her liver, and it's going very well. She has a clear airway, we're giving her fluids, and her bleeding is under control. If she responds well to the fluids, and she's still stable, then we'll re-evaluate her. She might not even need surgery," he looked at Jim's nervous expression, "So try not to worry. Nothing's definite yet. Just take it one step at a time."

He was trying to be reassuring to Jim. But after his last words, he saw a look of relief wash over Jim's face. A younger doctor poked his head out the door.

"Dr. Manning, the nurses need you to sign off on the medications," he said.

"Ok, I'll be right there," he replied and the younger doctor disappeared behind the door once again.

Dr. Manning turned back to Jim.

"Well, I'm going to go back in there and finish checking everything. You should be able to go back in soon."

"Ok, thanks very much doctor," said Jim shaking his hand. Dr. Manning smiled at him and headed back into the trauma room.

"Jim!" He turned as he heard his name being called from down the hall. He saw Andrea making her way down the semi-crowded hallway and started to walk towards her.

"Hey," he said to her, giving her a brief hug when they finally met. He led her back over to the chairs where he had sat with Dr. Manning.

Andrea caught a glimpse of Melinda through the windows in the doors, and gasped. She saw tubes and machines surrounding her best friend. He view was then obstructed by a doctor who had moved in front of Melinda.

"Oh my god, Jim," she began. He could see her eyes welling up again.

"Andrea, don't worry. It looks a lot worse than it actually is," he said in attempt to comfort her.

"Are you sure?"

Jim smiled.

"Yes, I'm sure. The doctor just explained everything to me. And nothing is life threatening," he said.

"Non-life threatening can still be bad," said Andrea, getting up from her chair and looking at Jim with sad eyes.

"Well none of this is good, but it's nothing serious," said Jim, "She's gonna be ok Andrea."

"But things can still go wrong." Tears were freely flowing now, and she looked back and forth from Melinda to Jim.

Jim rose from his seat and walked over to Andrea, who was now standing next to the door, watching the doctors work on her friend.

"But they won't," He said, standing next to her, "Just think positive."

"Thinking positive has nothing to do with making her better," she said coldly. Jim looked at her perplexed. He had never heard Andrea sound so callous before. Andrea looked at Jim's face, and realized she had been inappropriate.

"Jim, I'm sorry," she said, "I don't know what got into me."

Jim studied her face for a minute before speaking.

"Who did you lose?" He asked carefully.

"What?" She hadn't expected him to say that.

"It must have been someone close," he said. Andrea looked at Jim for a minute. He had always been such a good guy. She had always been glad Melinda found him and that they had become friends.

"My older cousin. When she was 26, doctors told her she had a brain tumor, but it was operable. So she had the operation and they told her everything was going to be fine," she was trying very hard not to break down, "Said she'd make a full recovery. She lived alone in her apartment. I was going over one day after work. No reason really. I just felt like I should visit."

She stopped talking. Jim looked at his wife's friend with great concern. They had been friends for a long time, but she had never confided in him like this. He wasn't really sure how to react. Before he could say anything, she continued.

"I walked in and she was laying down on the couch. I started talking to her, but she didn't answer me. It's pretty hard to answer someone when you're dead. They said she had an aneurysm. There was no way they could have predicted it."

"Andrea, I'm so sorry," said Jim, his heart really going out to her.

"You don't have to apologize for anything. It wasn't your fault," she began, "I just don't trust doctors when they say everything will be fine. Because it isn't always."

Jim nodded in understanding. Dr. Manning exited the room, along with all the other staff members who had been inside. Two men were wheeling Melinda's bed down the hall.

"She's doing very well," he assured Jim and Andrea. Somewhat on reflex, Andrea gave him a dirty look, but Jim caught it, and she quickly stopped.

"We're moving her to another room in case we get another trauma that comes in," he explained.

Jim and Andrea both followed the doctor down the hall, and waited as they placed Melinda into a new room, with light blue walls, and then left. Before leaving the room, Dr. Manning walked over to Jim.

"The fluids should be all ready in an hour or so. I'll be back to check on her then. Until then you're both welcome to stay in here. An orthopedic technician should be in soon to apply the cast, but until then, make sure the splint stays on."

"Ok," Jim nodded.

"If you need anything, just push the red button next to the bed, or go to the administration desk, and tell them the problem."

"Thank you so much," said Jim. He really was thankful that they had gotten such a good doctor.

Once he had left, Andrea and Jim made their way over to Melinda's bed and sat next to her.

"How are you feeling?" asked Andrea.

"I'm fine," said Melinda, noticing Andrea's tear streaked face, "Are you ok?"

Andrea laughed. It was just like Melinda to ask her if she was ok, even though she was the one in a hospital bed.

"Never better," she replied.

"I'm sorry I scared you guys. I didn't mean for this to happen," said Melinda quietly.

"We know you didn't. It's not your fault Mel. We're just glad that you're ok," said Jim.

"So what's actually wrong with me?" asked Melinda, still slightly confused.

"The doctors didn't tell you?" asked Andrea.

"Well, if they did, I wasn't listening," she replied.

"Well, they said you'll probably have a headache for a few days, your nose is going to be sore, and they're going to put a cast on your arm," said Jim.

"Oh! Can I sign it?" asked Andrea.

"Of course you can," said Melinda laughing. But her smile quickly turned to a grimace.

"Are you ok?" Andrea asked, alarmed by the sudden change of emotion.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My stomach hurts though," she said. She looked at Jim. "Something you would like to tell me?"

"I was getting there," said Jim, "They said you injured your liver and once the IV is finished, they're going to come back and look at you again."

"Meaning what?" asked Melinda.

"Well, if you're stable enough when they check you, then you won't need surgery. It'll heal on its own."

"Good. That's good," Melinda smiled.

There was an awkward silence between the three of them.

Jim wanted to talk to Melinda about what happened.

Andrea knew Jim wanted to talk to Melinda.

Melinda also was aware that's what Jim wanted, but she wasn't sure she could bring herself to talk about it.

"Mel," Jim began.

"Yeah, I know," Melinda replied, "You want to know what happened."

"It would help me sleep soundly tonight," he said smiling. Melinda rolled her eyes, and Andrea giggled.

Melinda closed her eyes and thought back to the moment Ryan opened the door. She wished she had just left then.

She opened her eyes again, and looked at her husband and best friend. She knew this wasn't going to be easy to talk about.


	14. Tears

**A/N: I am SO sorry for the lack of updating. I've been so busy with college stuff I haven't had time for anything else! I decided to take a break from my 10 page end of semester paper to write another chapter. 3 procrastination. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of its characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 14:**

She had never found it very hard to talk to Jim. Her husband. He was one of the most understanding people she had ever met. After all, he had believed the whole ghost thing almost immediately. She always confided in him about the ghosts she came across. It was like a reflex, and just something that came naturally easy to her.

And Andrea, her best friend. She had always been there too. They talked about everything, from boys and makeup, to ghosts and spirits. It was always a relief to have Andrea there to talk to, about the darker things in life that not many people were in tune with.

So then why was talking about this so hard? It was just like any other conversation, right?

Wrong. This was directly about her. Talking about she had been attacked. Talking about how she had almost been killed. She didn't know if she could bring herself to talk about it. She couldn't even think about it without getting upset.

It had been silent for awhile now. Jim could tell that a lot of things were running through Melinda's mind. The last thing he wanted to do was upset her, but he had to know. And deep down, he knew she wanted to tell him, but she was just scared.

"It's ok Mel," he said gently, taking her hand in his, "Take your time. I know it's not easy."

She was stunned when she found herself wiping away a tear that she hadn't even known had fallen. She was crying already? 'Great start Mel,' she thought to herself. But then she looked at the two people in the room with her. She knew them. These people wouldn't judge her. They were there because they honestly cared about her. She didn't have to be ashamed of what happened or crying over what did. And this helped her relax a little.

"Well," she began slowly, "A little after one I left work, and went over to the Sullivan's. Honestly I wasn't trying to get into anything, I just wanted to ask a few questions, that's all."

Jim opened his mouth to say something, but thought it would be best if he let his wife tell the story without interruptions. She went on to tell them how she explained to Ryan she had seen Carly, and that Michelle had been the one who shot Carly.

The tears were starting to flow again. It was the part she had dreaded talking about.

"He got mad at me, said that I was making lies about his daughter, and he hit me in the face, and I fell. Then he brought me down to the basement. He was really angry. He kept yelling that his daughter hadn't killed anyone. Then I guess I passed out, because the next thing I remember was waking up on the ground."

"I went up the stairs to leave, but the door was locked. Then I saw Carly again. She was saying that she was sorry for getting me into this. Then I called you," she said, motioning to Jim, "He threw the phone against the wall, and hit my arm with a baseball bat. Then I heard a shot, and people running. And then I heard the both of you. I knew everything would be ok."

The waterworks were flowing. Hard.

Andrea was crying, not out of sadness, but in admiration. Melinda. Her best friend. She had been so strong, for so long. Dealing with things ordinary people could never deal with. And what did she ever get in return? Nothing. Maybe a thank you. But she did it because she cared. Because she's a good person. Then something like this goes and happens. But Melinda somehow always mustered up the courage to get through it.

Melinda was crying. The realization of what had happened had finally hit her. She knew she was lucky to be alive. She cried because she felt stupid for going over to the Sullivan's without any kind of real plan. She cried because she had made herself vulnerable. She cried because she made the people who love her so much worry. But she felt like she had to cry. Just to get it all out. She never would have admitted it, but during that fit of hysterics was the best she had felt all day.

Jim was crying. Why? He wasn't very sure. It might have been because he had seen Andrea and Melinda crying. It might have been because of everything Melinda had been through. Or it might have been because he finally realized that he can't protect her. Being a paramedic, he saved people, and in doing so, created less spirits for her to have to worry about. He made her call every time she was doing something ghost related. And that had always worked. She had always been safe until now.

The crying slowly faded out, and Melinda drifted into a restless sleep. Andrea and Jim rose from their chairs and filed out into the hall, just as a nurse was coming in for her rounds.

"Look, Andrea. You should go home, get some rest. I'll stay here with Mel, and you can come back in the morning," said Jim, leaning against the stark white wall.

"Jim-" she started.

"Don't argue with me. Mel would have my head if she knew you spent the night in an uncomfortable waiting room chair," he said smiling, "Really, go home. Take a shower. Watch some TV. Relax. And come back in the morning."

"And you'll call me-" she began.

"If anything changes. Yeah," he finished.

She smiled at him, gave him a quick hug goodbye, and headed down the dreary white hallway. Finding himself with some extra time, Jim walked over to the desk.

"I was wondering if a patient named Ryan Sullivan was brought in," he said to the stout woman sitting behind the desk. She glanced at the computer screen, snapped her gum, hit some buttons on the keyboard, and looked back at Jim.

"Yeah, says he went up for surgery a little while ago," she said casually.

"Ok, thanks," said Jim, and he headed towards the elevators before she could even reply.

He took the elevator up to the surgical floor, and walked straight over to the desk. He asked the man behind the desk if there was a Ryan Sullivan. The man nodded, and pointed over to a door with two police officers standing outside. They were two that he had never seen before. He walked over to them and introduced himself.

"I'm Jim Clancey, Melinda's husband," he said, shaking their hands.

"I'm Officer Donovan, and this is Officer Turner. We're in charge of this guy," he said motioning into Ryan's room.

"How is he?" asked Jim.

"The docs said he's gonna be just fine. Bullet went through and through. Should have some nice jail time waiting for him once he's outta this bed," Officer Turner said.

"We're gonna have to get a statement from your wife at some point. There's no rush really. Just some point over the next few days. He's not going to be able to leave for a while, so that buys us some time," Donovan said.

"Ok, well sometime tomorrow should be alright. I'd have you come down now, but she just fell asleep," said Jim.

"Don't worry about it. One of us will always be here. Have to keep an eye on him. So we'll stop down tomorrow at some point," said Turner.

Jim glanced at his watch. It was a little past nine, which meant Melinda's fluids would be almost finished being administered. He looked back to the two officers.

"I really have to be getting back to Melinda," he said, "It was nice meeting both of you."

"We'll see you tomorrow then," said Turner, and Jim was off to the elevator once again.

He arrived back to Melinda's room to find her awake.

"You didn't sleep long," he said.

"Figured I just needed a power nap," she said smiling, "Guess I was just temporarily emotionally drained. Where'd you go to?"

"To check on Ryan," he said. He looked at her eyes, silently telling him to continue. "The doctors say he'll be fine, but there's two cops up there monitoring him. They're staying all night. And he'll probably go to prison. You have to give your statement soon. They said whenever you feel ready. They're going to stop by tomorrow."

"Tomorrow's good," she said quietly.

It was silent for a few more seconds.

"The IV's almost finished," observed Jim, "So they'll be back to re-evaluate you soon."

He looked over to Melinda. She looked…worried?

"Mel, I'm sure it's going to be fine. Even if you need surgery, it's a relatively-" He was cut off.

"I saw the light," she said bluntly.

Jim wasn't expecting this.

"What?" he asked. Maybe he hadn't heard her correctly.

"I saw the light," she said again, this time more slowly, "I wanted to go into it. I really did. Everything was just hurting, all over."

There was no use trying to stop the tears from flowing out of her eyes.

"But I hear you. I heard your voice. And you were scared. And I knew I couldn't leave you," she said, sobbing.

Jim's face softened, and he pulled his wife into a deep hug. He could feel her tears running down his neck.

"I'm so sorry. I would never give up on you," she said between breaths.

Jim broke the hug, and placed his hands on Melinda's face, looking into her eyes.

"I know you never would. And I wouldn't give up on you. You know that," he said.

"But I almost did. I almost went into the light," she replied.

"But you didn't, did you? Mel, deep down you know you never would have gone. No matter how badly you were hurting. And you know why?"

She shook her head.

"It's because love is stronger than anything. Our love. Our connection that we have. That's more than anything. No matter how bad either one of us feels, we know that we'll always have each other. No matter what."

Tears had fallen down Jim's face now.

"And besides," he said, "I'm a paramedic. I'll always fix you up."

She laughed as she wiped the tears away from her face, and pulled Jim into another hug.

"I love you," she said.

"And I love you," he replied.


	15. Get Some Rest

**A/N: Ok, so that was like, a 2 month period of no updating. A million sorries. Things have been insanee here. We just had to move (we got foreclosed) and my mum's been sick in the hospital for awhile. So I haven't really had much time to write. So sorry!! But here we go, with chapter 15.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of its characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan.**

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 15:**

Hours had passed. Melinda had fallen asleep, with Jim beside her, sitting in the chair, with his head resting on the bed. Dr. Manning and two different nurses had been back and forth out of the room. They had placed the cast on her arm, given Melinda the IV fluids and monitored all of her vital signs.

The sound of voices shook Jim from him slumber. Lifting his head from the bed, he stretched his arms in front of him. He turned his head and saw the doctor and a nurse huddled together by the door. Jim felt a knot in his stomach.

Dr. Manning noticed that Jim had woken up, and motioned for him to follow him into the hall. Jim got up and walked into the hall behind the doctor, closing the door behind him. The doctor could tell by the look on Jim's face that he was fearing for the worst.

"Relax Jim," he said, "Everything's fine. He liver responded wonderfully to the fluids."

Jim let out a huge breath of relief.

"That's great," he said, smiling, "So, what do we do now?"

"Well, I want to keep her here for one more day, just for observation. To make sure that everything stays in working order. So I would say unless something goes wrong today or tonight, she should be able to go home tomorrow."

"Oh, thanks so much doctor," said Jim, shaking the doctors' hand.

"You're very welcome," he replied.

Jim looked at his watch and saw that it was almost ten in the morning.

"I should go call Melinda's friend. She'll probably want to come see her," said Jim.

"Alright, I'll be somewhere around this hallway if you need me," Dr. Manning replied.

Jim nodded, took out his cell phone and dialed Andrea. After a few rings, she answered.

"Hey Andrea," said Jim, "I have some good news."

Melinda awoke to an empty room. Jim wasn't by her side anymore, and she was somewhat glad. She hoped that he had gone home to get some rest. But maybe he had already, and come back. Maybe he was still home.

"I wonder what time it is anyways," she wondered aloud. To her surprise, she got an answer.

"It's ten in the morning," spoke a voice. Melinda turned her head to the window and saw a girl standing there.

"Carly," Melinda said, "How are you?"

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" she replied, almost smiling.

"Well, I'm fine," said Melinda.

"You don't really look it," the young girl replied, the guilt evident in her voice.

"Carly, this wasn't your fault," said Melinda, trying to comfort her, "It was Ryan's."

"I know, but if it weren't for me, you wouldn't have been in this situation at all," she said matter-of-factly.

Melinda opened her mouth to speak, but she suddenly felt another presence in the room and turned her head towards the door. There was an old woman in a hospital gown, standing in the corner. Carly looked from the woman back to Melinda. She went to look at the woman again, but as quickly as she had appeared, she disappeared.

"You see them everywhere, huh?" asked Carly.

"Pretty much," replied Melinda, turning her attention back to the window.

"I think it would drive me insane."

"Yeah, you would think that. But after awhile, you just get used to it. Some days are worse than others, but you pull through. Besides, someone has to help spirits crossover."

Carly looked thoughtful for a minute.

"Well, I'm glad you do what you do. I really don't wanna be stuck here forever," she said. After a brief pause, she continued, "What's on the other side?"

"Well, I can't say for sure. But I know it can't be bad. When I saw the light, I saw my grandmother. That's why I wanted to go so badly. I knew once I was with her I would be safe, and everything would be alright. But it wasn't my time, and I see that now," explained Melinda.

"Do you think my sister's there?" asked Carly, "She died when we were little. We were playing catch and the ball went in the street. She ran to get it, and got hit by a car."

"Oh, Carly," said Melinda, "I'm so sorry."

"No, it's ok. Really," replied Carly, "I just wanted to know if she would be waiting for me."

"I'm sure she is," said Melinda smiling. Carly smiled back.

Suddenly, Carly disappeared as the door opened and Andrea entered.

"Hey you!" she exclaimed, "You're awake!"

"Hey you!" Melinda mocked, "You look very well rested."

"I know. Jim made me go home last night. I even showered. So I don't smell totally repulsive," said Andrea.

Melinda laughed.

"Where is Jim anyways?" she asked.

"I think he went to the bathroom. He woke up a little while ago and talked to the doctors. Then he called me."

"Was he here all night?"

"He hasn't left at all," Andrea replied, smiling.

"So when can I bust out of here?"

"Well, Jim said the doctors just want to observe you today, and you can leave tomorrow. I guess everything they were hoping for happened. So you're pretty much in the clear."

"Well that's good to hear. Do you think you could convince Jim to go home tonight?"

"Aww, you want him to get some rest in a comfortable bed?" asked Andrea, "That's very sweet of you."

Andrea took a minute to study her friends' face, who's eyes said that wasn't what she was planning at all.

"Wait a minute. Melinda Gordon, what are you up to?" asked Andrea.

"Nothing!"

"Liar. You want Jim gone for some reason," said Andrea, thinking as hard as she could. Then it hit her.

"You are not going to see Ryan," she said in a stern voice.

"Andrea, I have to!"

"No, no, no. A million times no. That man is the whole reason why you're in here to begin with. Now you want to go have a friendly visit?"

"Well, I would take a friendly visit over the last visit we had," Melinda said sarcastically.

"Don't try to be funny here," said Andrea, "He's dangerous."

"And he's also recovering from being shot and being guarded by the police 24/7. He's not going to try to pull anything," she said, "Besides, I've come too far to not cross this ghost over."

"Ugh. I hate it when you're right," said Andrea to her friend, "I'll try to get Jim to go home tonight. Ok?"

"Thank you," said Melinda gratefully.

The girls heard a knock on the door, and turned to see Jim come in. He smiled at the sight of Melinda sitting up and talking.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"Not too bad," she answered, "Andrea filled me in on what the doctor said."

"See? Good news. I told you everything would be fine," he said.

"Yes you did," she said smiling, "And this afternoon, you're going home for the night. You both are."

"What? Mel, I don't think so," said Jim.

Melinda shot a look over to Andrea.

"Jim, come on. Resting at home would do you good. Besides, we know she's fine. Keeping her here is just a precaution. It's not gonna do you any good staying here. It's only gonna piss Mel off," said Andrea.

Jim looked at Melinda, and sighed.

"Fine. You win," he said.

Melinda smiled in victory.

"I'll be fine," she said, reassuringly.

"Well, I'm gonna go get you some real food before you give me the boot out of here," said Jim. "How does a chocolate chip croissant from Village Java sound?"

"Like heaven," replied Melinda. Jim laughed.

"Ok. I'll be right back with that. You want anything Andrea? Coffee?"

"No thanks Jim. I'm all set."

Two croissants and a bunch of coffee later, Andrea and Jim were ready to leave.

"Gosh, you really were hungry," said Andrea.

"Well yeah," replied Melinda, "Have you seen what they try to pass for food here?"

They all laughed, as Andrea gave Melinda a quick hug.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning," she said.

"Bring more croissants," Melinda replied.

"Funny," said Jim, placing a kiss on her forehead, "Don't give the doctors too hard of a time."

"I won't," she promised.

Soon they were out the door, and Melinda found herself alone in the room once again. She figured it must have been around noon, because a nurse was bringing around the lunch trays of mystery meat and some type of unidentifiable vegetable. Melinda was thankful that Village Java was so close to the hospital.

She soon found that she was very bored. She had gone through the stations on the television at least a dozen times, and she had read the magazine that someone had left on her rolling tray table at least two dozen.

She heard a knock at the door and was sure it was Jim coming back to check on her.

"Jim, really. I'm fine. Go home. And stay there!" she exclaimed.

She turned her head to face the door, and was surprised to see a girl standing there. Melinda's first instinct was to think it was Carly. But that wasn't right. Ghosts couldn't knock. That would only leave one other person.

"Michelle?" asked Melinda, "What are you doing here?"


	16. Realizing

**A/N: Wow. Such a delay. So sorry. It seems I have endless papers to write this year. I just finished my 12 page history paper. Not nearly as fun as this story. I'm thinking I only see one chapter after this one!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Ghost Whisperer or any of its characters. I do own Michelle, Carly and Ryan. (And the doctor) **

**This is Who We Are**

**Chapter 16:**

Michelle hadn't moved from her place at the door just yet. She couldn't tell what Melinda was thinking. After a few moments if staring, Melinda shook herself out of her stupor.

"Um, come on in," said Melinda, pulling herself into a more upright position.

Michelle walked into the room very slowly and sat down in the chair next to Melinda's bed, where Jim had spent the past day.

Apart from the frequent beeps from the monitors, there was an uncomfortable silence in the room. Melinda was waiting for Michelle to say something, since after all, Michelle had come to her. However, once a few minutes had passed, and no words had been exchanged, Melinda spoke up.

"Was there something you needed Michelle?" asked Melinda, "I'm a little confused as to why you're in here visiting me, while you're father's upstairs recovering from surgery."

The last part came out a bit harsher than she had intended it to. She was almost positive Michelle was going to say nothing to her.

"I'm sorry."

Two words. That's all. But what was she apologizing for? She hadn't put Melinda in this bed. Her father did.

"For what?" asked Melinda. Michelle sighed.

"Everything," she replied standing up. She started to walk away, but she stopped, and turned back to speak again.

"I never wanted this to happen," she said, motioning to Melinda in the bed, "I was just afraid of my dad finding out what I did. I didn't think it was any of your business."

"I know, and I'm so sorry for having to make you relive everything, but it's what Carly wants. It's the only way to get her to cross over," Melinda explained.

"I know that. Which is why I've been doing a lot of thinking since that day you talked to me in the square."

Unknown to Michelle, Carly had appeared in the room. Melinda looked at her, but decided not to mention anything to Michelle. At least, not yet.

"What I did to Carly was wrong. I killed her because I was jealous that Zack asked her to the dance. It was completely out of line. And I can see that now. I wish more than anything that I could take back what I did."

At this point Michelle was back in the chair, crying. Melinda took another moment to glance back at Carly. Carly nodded to her, and she turned back to Michelle.

"Michelle, Carly's here."

"What?" she asked, the confusion visible on her face, "Right now?"

Melinda nodded.

"Tell her that Zack didn't like me, he liked her. He wanted to know if I thought she would go to the dance with her," said Carly softly.

"Michelle, Zack didn't ask her to the dance. He asked her if she thought you would want to go with him," said Melinda, speaking for Carly.

A look of shock and horror washed over Michelle's face.

"What?" she asked, praying that she had heard Melinda wrong.

"Zack never asked Carly to the dance," she said, more quietly this time.

Memories of the night came flashing back to Michelle as she remembered what Carly had said to her.

"_Michelle! You didn't let me fin-" Carly started, but was cut off by Michelle._

"_I should have known you'd try and steal him! You're always so jealous of everyone!" yelled Michelle._

"_Woah. Michelle. Put it down."_

"_No! I'm sick of you! I can't deal with knowing every time I find something that makes me happy, you're gonna be there to steal it from right under me!" yelled Michelle._

"_Michelle! Listen to me! I -"_

"She tried to tell me. But I wouldn't listen," said Michelle, almost inaudible.

Carly felt a tug on her heart as she saw her best friend cry for her. But Carly had put this all in the past. It was Ryan she wanted the truth told to. The one who had gone around saying for months that 'she got what she deserved.'

"Can you tell her that I'm not doing this to hurt her?" The pain was evident in her voice, "I just want her father to know that what he was telling people was wrong."

"Michelle," Melinda said gently, and Michelle raised her head to look at her, wiping the tears from her eyes, "She's not doing this to hurt you. She just wants the truth to come out to your father, for the things he said."

Michelle nodded.

"He never did like Carly much. I never knew why," she said to Melinda, "Can you tell her that I'm so sorry for what I did. I should have listened to her. I should have known that she wouldn't do anything like that to me. Tell her that?"

"You just did," said Melinda.

"She can hear me?"

"Yes, and she forgives you. She just wants the truth to come out," she replied.

Michelle was quiet for a minute, the look on her face clearly showing she was forming some type of plan. She suddenly held her hand out to Melinda. Melinda looked at her, confused.

"I'm gonna take you to see my dad. The cops would never let you in alone," she said.

Melinda still didn't make any move to take the young girl's hand.

"Wait, can you walk?" asked Michelle.

At that Melinda had to laugh.

"Yes. I'm perfectly capable to walk. But what made you change your mind?"

"I told you. I thought really hard about it. And especially now, since Carly didn't even do anything. It's the right thing to do. And I've been keeping it a secret for way too long."

Melinda smiled at her.

"This is very brave of you Michelle. You know that?"

"Yeah, I guess. Nowhere near as brave as you though."

Melinda just smiled as she took hold of Michelle with one hand, and her IV pole with the other. They headed down the hall, and into the elevator. Michelle hit the button, and the doors closed.

"Nervous?" asked Michelle.

"A little. Are you?"

"A lot."

The doors opened and they were in the surgical ward. It wasn't hard to find Ryan's room. It was the only room with police officers outside of it. The officers let Michelle and Melinda into the room without question. Clearly they already knew Michelle. Ryan was lying in the bed, with his right hand handcuffed to the rail.

"Dad? It's Michelle. I brought someone to visit."

Ryan turned towards his daughter, and was shocked to see Melinda. He could see the damage that he had inflicted on her. The bruises, the nose. Michelle pulled over a chair for Melinda, and she sat, very aware of the fact that Carly was also in the room.

"Dad, we really have to talk," said Michelle, in an effort to start the conversation.

Turning away from Melinda, he focused on his daughter.

"Sure baby. About what?"

"Carly."

It was clearly a sore subject that he didn't wish to discuss any further.

"Dad, please. Just listen, ok?"

He nodded.

"What Melinda said was true. I killed Carly. Over something stupid that didn't even turn out to be true. But that's not the point. The point is, that Carly's death wasn't an accident. I did it."

After a few minutes of taking it in, Ryan spoke.

"Why are you telling me this now? It's been a year. Why wait?"

"Because Carly's still here. And she needed you to know the truth before she could move on."

"Excuse me?"

"What Melinda told you was true. She really can see Carly. Please dad. Can you just apologize for what you did?"

He looked at Melinda, who was trying to avoid looking him in the eyes.

"This is true?"

"Yes sir, it is."

"And she's been stuck here, because of what I was saying?"

"She knew you never approved of her, and when she died it made you think even less of her. She just wanted you to know that she wasn't that terrible of a person," said Melinda.

"I know I said some harsh things. Saying that she deserved it wasn't right, and for that I do apologize. I never would have wished for something like this to happen. She was my daughter's best friend. She was always around, like another daughter," said Ryan, "She was a little flirtatious sometimes. But I didn't hate her for it."

"Mr. Sullivan, Carly's here."

"She is? Can you tell her what I just said?"

"She heard you."

"What did she say?" he asked.

Melinda looked to Carly for an answer.

"Tell him that it's ok. I just wanted him to know. And I'm not mad. People make mistakes."

"She's not mad at you. And she forgives you," Melinda said to Ryan.

Tears were falling from everyone's eyes by this point. All except Carly. She was distracted by something else.

"It's so bright. What is it?"

"It's the light," Melinda told her, "That's where you have to go. You're ready now."

"What?" exclaimed Michelle, "She can't leave now!"

"Tell her it'll be ok. I'll be watching over her always. And tell her to save some oreo's and peanut butter for me when she has them, ok?" asked Michelle.

"I promise I will," said Melinda.

There was an ever so slight breeze and she was gone.

"Was that her?" asked Michelle.

Melinda nodded, and gave her a comforting hug.

"I better get going. The doctor's aren't going to like it if I'm gone much longer," said Melinda. She stood up with Michelle's help.

"Thank you for everything Melinda," she said, giving her another hug, "Sorry I was so terrible."

"I owe you an apology too Melinda. I can't express how terrible I feel. This shouldn't have ever happened. I don't know what came over me," he said.

"You were just trying to protect your daughter. I can't fault you for that," she said smiling at the two as she made her way out the door and back to the elevator.


	17. This is Who We Are

The next morning, with Jim and Andrea with her, Melinda left the hospital.

"This whole 'wheelchair upon exiting' tradition really has to be changed soon," said Melinda, who upon the doctors' request was leaving the hospital in a wheelchair, pushed by Jim.

"Well, maybe you shouldn't land in the hospital so often. Then you wouldn't have to worry about it," said Andrea, who was walking to the left of them, carrying the flowers that Jim had brought Melinda the previous day.

"Gee, I'll work on it," said Melinda.

The second they passed through the automatic doors into the parking lot Melinda pushed herself out of the chair.

"This is as far as I go like this," she said.

Jim and Andrea couldn't help but laugh.

"So, what are we doing for lunch?" asked Melinda, "I'm thinking something delicious."

"What do you feel like?" asked Andrea.

They had reached the car, and were filing inside. Andrea placed the flowers on the floor, behind Jim. Once they were all settled in the car, they brainstormed ideas for lunch.

"Well, anyplace without jello or tan foods sounds great to me," said Melinda smiling.

"So…something colorful? Why don't we just go to a candy store?" asked Jim, smiling back.

A few days later, Melinda returned back to work. Jim had really wanted her to take the week off, but they negotiated and she was able to return to the antique shop three days later.

She had given her statement to the police, but decided not to press any further charges on Ryan. She knew he had learned a great lesson, and she also knew that Michelle would need him, perhaps now, more than ever.

She later learned that he was sentenced to only a few months in prison, where he was let out early due to his cooperation and his volunteerism. He and Michelle kept in contact with Melinda, and when he was released, they even brought some old antiques they discovered in their house. And according to Michelle, her father had nothing but good things to say about Carly.

On Melinda's first day back to work, she had met Jim in the square for lunch.

"So, things are getting back to normal, huh?" asked Jim, "or…as normal as they've ever been for us."

She looked around the square at all of the spirits who were going about their day. The Victorian woman near the bookstore. The two little boys running up and down the sidewalk in plaid shirts. The large man over by the stone chess boards.

Melinda smiled. "They sure are." She paused, and looked back to him. "You're really not upset that the ghosts aren't gone?

"Honey. I love what you do. I love that you love it. Sure, I hate worrying about you, but hey. This is who we are. And I wouldn't want to be anyone else."

"That's a perfect answer," said Melinda smiling. She leaned over, resting her head on Jim's shoulder. She then proceeded to describe the different spirits of the square.

She wasn't sure what the next few years would bring her. She wasn't even sure what the next day would bring her. But she was sure of one thing: She had never been happier.

End.

* * *

THAT'S IT!  
That is the end. Finally. Only….4 years in the works? Wow.  
Thank you to all of you who have comment (and who will continue to). I read all of them, and really take them to heart.

You guys were the reason I kept this story going. You rock!


	18. Just a Note From Me!

Hey guys!

I just wanted to thank you all so much for sticking with me, and continuing to read my story! I just read through all of my reviews, and I want you to know how much I appreciate the input from all of you. I don't consider myself to be a very good writer, so I'm so flattered to read what you guys had to say!

I'll hopefully be working on some more stories in the future. I've had a Sweeney Todd & a 24 story in the works for awhile, but I think I'll be getting rid of the Sweeney Todd one. I just don't see it going anywhere. If you have any suggestions on what you'd like to see, feel free to drop me a line!

Thanks again for all of your support!

Love,

Jess


	19. Operation Freefall!

Hey guys!

I just wanted to let you all know that I'm trying to raise money for sexual violence. If you would consider making a donation or simply spreading the word, I'd really appreciate it!

www. firstgiving .com /fundraiser /jess-schneider /operation-freefall

(Copy and paste into your browser and remove the spaces!)

Thanks always for all your support! I have some new story ideas in the works, so stay tuned!

Love,

Jess


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